Disclosing Errors to Patients: Perspectives of Registered Nurses

Clarity of purpose

“…At the very least, as a clear statement of intent, they serve as a focus for debate or complaint if any of the stakeholders believe that the organisation is not honouring its stated mission. Adherence to a culture of transparency has been widely accepted as a desirable goal in many fi elds; e.g., 'In recent years, many governments have worked to increase openness and transparency in their actions' (Bertot, Jaeger and Grimes, 2010), and 'Nurse managers played a key role in creating a culture of transparency and in being a resource for error disclosures' (Shannon and others, 2009). This culture is also applicable to libraries.…”

Nurses’ perspectives regarding the disclosure of errors to patients: A qualitative study

“…The disclosure of errors to patients has tended to have been conceptualised as occurring primarily in the physician-patient dyad, and previous international research on the issue has mainly focused on physicians' and patients' attitudes and experiences (Shannon et al, 2009). Healthcare, however, ''is delivered by interprofessional teams, in which nurses share in the culpability for errors, and hence, in responsibility for disclosure'' (Shannon et al, 2009(Shannon et al, , 2005.…”

“…Healthcare, however, ''is delivered by interprofessional teams, in which nurses share in the culpability for errors, and hence, in responsibility for disclosure'' (Shannon et al, 2009(Shannon et al, , 2005. Indeed, there is growing evidence that patients and families actually prefer to have an interprofessional approach to disclosure (Iedema et al, 2008).…”

“…In addressing the ''disclosure gap'' an understanding of the views of all members of the healthcare team is needed. International research on nurses' views regarding errors and disclosing errors to patients, however, is currently limited (O'Connor et al, 2010;Shannon et al, 2009). Shannon et al (2009) focus group study conducted in the United States was one of the first to systematically explore nurses' attitudes and experiences regarding error disclosure to patients (Shannon et al, 2009).…”

Dealing with Errors on the Job

“…However, research indicates that one of the major reasons errors are not reported is that nurses fear reprisals from administration and repercussions from their peers (Mayo & Duncan, 2004;Osborne, Blais, & Hayes, 1999). Other reasons include organizational factors such as inefficient reporting mechanisms (Uribe, Scheweikhart, Pathak, Dow, & Marsh, 2002), loss of professional self-esteem, fear of lawsuits (Uribe et al, 2002), degree of risk to patient and nurse, and loss of patients' and families' trust (Cook, Hoas, Guttmannova, & Joyner, 2004;Crigger & Meek, 2007;Shannon, Foglia, Hardy, & Gallagher, 2009;Uribe et al, 2002). All of these reasons can make the individual nurse feel like he or she is in a very precarious and vulnerable position.…”