Female dental students’ perceptions of patient safety culture: a cross sectional study at a middle eastern setting

Abstract

BackgroundPatient safety is an integral part of all health care specialties, including dentistry. Dental students are exposed to patient safety culture during their clinical training. The aim of this study was to evaluate the perception of female students enrolled in dental degrees and dental hygiene programs towards patient safety culture and to determine its associated factors at a Middle Eastern setting.MethodsThis is a cross sectional study, based on a self-administered, English language questionnaire distributed by convenience among female dental students enrolled in two major Colleges of dentistry in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Participants had fulfilled at least one year of clinical training. Sample characteristics included the specialty and years of clinical training. Student’s perception was measured using the validated Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ) that consists of 36 statements, distributed over six domains. Responses were rated on a five point Likert scale and the average positive response rate (APRR) was calculated. Binary logistic regression models were constructed to determine factors significantly associated with positive perceptions.ResultsThe response rate of both student programs was 221/312(70.8%). Students of dental sciences and dental hygiene programs were 133(60.2%) and 88(39.8%) respectively. Almost 42% of students were in their 1st and 2nd years of clinical training. The APRR of: Team Work Climate domain was 54.4 ± 28.0, Safety Climate domain was 51.4 ± 29.7, Job Satisfaction domain was 64.5 ± 33.8, Stress Recognition domain was 56.2 ± 37.8, Perceived Management Support domain was 50.7 ± 37.7, and Working conditions was 55.3 ± 32.1. Female students in their 3rd and 4th year of clinical were adj.OR = 2.3[1.3–4.0] times more likely to have positive perception regarding the team work climate domain when compared to 1st and 2nd year clinical students, P = 0.005. At each of the six individual domains, the odds of having a positive perception were also significantly higher among dentistry students in comparison to dental hygiene students with a range of adj.OR 2.6–4.6.ConclusionsApparently patient safety is a concern among female dental students enrolled in dental degree and dental hygiene programs. This requires more attention from the staff, dental college's leadership/management, and faculty/students. Perception of dental students towards patient safety culture is expected to improve with the increase of clinical training.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12909-018-1415-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Patient safety culture amongst dental students and interns in Dammam, Saudi Arabia

“…Therefore, the questionnaire was reviewed comprehensively from a cultural point of view and the items in the SAQ were evaluated for relevance and acceptance in dental students and interns in Saudi Arabian culture 24 . A recent study in the country used SAQ to assess the underlying concept of patient safety culture amongst dental students 12 . This also supported our cross‐cultural adaptation process 24 .…”

“…Evidence suggests that the inclusion of patient safety programmes in curricula enables students to recognise the importance of patient safety culture which has positive effects on their healthcare attitudes and behaviours, thus making them safer healthcare providers in the future 12 . Myung et al 13 analysed data of medical students before and after incorporating patient safety course into the curriculum and observed a significant increase in students' awareness about patient safety.…”

“…For instance, patient safety culture from seven dental schools was compared with twenty general hospitals in the United States and it was found the participants in dental schools demonstrated higher overall patient safety culture scores than their counterparts in hospitals 15 . In Riyadh, a study of female students from two dental colleges showed that the students of the dentistry programme were more likely to have a positive perception of patient safety culture than dental hygiene students 12 . However, another study in Riyadh reported a more positive score about patient safety culture by dental assistants than dental students 16 .…”

Segurança do paciente no cuidado odontológico: revisão integrativa

“…Training is essential for dealing with the problems that professionals may face during their careers 58,59,60 , and it is important to incorporate the theme of patient safety starting in the early years of undergraduate school 61 . One study 39 of Dentistry students identified predisposing human factors related to AE such as operator fatigue, unawareness of risks, and failures of referrals.…”

“…Patient safety culture means the beliefs, values, and standards shared by professionals and that also influence their behaviors and actions 63 . In the course of this review, studies alluded to the theme 13,64,65 or used it as their central focus 47,61,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73 . Positive points were found, such has a high overall perception of patient safety; patient-centered care; the pursuit of effective and equitable care; and the value assigned to teamwork.…”