A retrospective analysis of adverse events reported by Tunisian intensive care units’ professionals

Abstract

Introduction Adverse events (AEs) that occur in hospitals remain a challenge worldwide, and especially in intensive care units (ICUs) where they are more likely to occur. Monitoring of AEs can provide insight into the status and advances of patient safety. This study aimed to examine the AEs reported during the 20 months after the implementation of the AE reporting system. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of a voluntary ICU AE reporting system. Incidents were reported by the staff from ten ICUs in the Sahloul University Hospital (Tunisia) between February 2020 and September 2021. Results A total of 265 reports were received, of which 61.9% were deemed preventable. The most frequently reported event was healthcare-associated infection (30.2%, n = 80), followed by pressure ulcers (18.5%, n = 49). At the time of reporting, 25 patients (9.4%) had died as a result of an AE and in 51.3% of cases, the event had resulted in an increased length of stay. Provider-related factors contributed to 64.2% of the events, whilst patient-related factors contributed to 53.6% of the events. As for criticality, 34.3% of the events (n = 91) were unacceptable (c3) and 36.3% of the events (n = 96) were ‘acceptable under control’ (c2). Conclusions The reporting system provided rich information on the characteristics of reported AEs that occur in ICUs and their consequences and may be therefore useful for designing effective and evidence-based interventions to reduce the occurrence of AEs.

Impact of an educational intervention on patient safety culture among gynecology-obstetrics’ healthcare professionals

“…Therefore, mistakes must be regarded as valuable teaching tools and precious opportunities to think, learn, and adjust practices [ 26 ]. The presence of a reporting system that coordinates the activity of reporting AEs in a manner that employees can learn from them is one of the best resources and a requirement for enhancing the learning culture within a unit [ 1 ]. It is important to note that reporting alone is not sufficient to instore a learning culture.…”

“…In recent years, patient safety has begun to receive particular attention and has become a priority all over the world due to the persistent high and rising incidence of adverse events (AEs), their impact, and the availability of efficient and practical preventative measures [1][2][3]. The incidence of AEs in hospitalized patients ranges from 3 to 17% and up to 50% of AEs are deemed preventable [4].…”

Eventos adversos hospitalares: análise da notificação interna e dos motivos para subnotificação nos sistemas oficiais

“…Apesar de a existência dos sistemas de notificação nos hospitais e dos profissionais de saúde terem ciência sobre os mesmos (9) , a notificação ainda é limitada, representando cerca de 7 a 15% dos eventos adversos ocorridos (10) .…”