Browsing by Author "Austin, Janice Lynn"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    ItemOpen Access
    Preventable adverse events in surgical patients: A meta-analysis and knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) assessment
    (2018-04-09) Austin, Janice Lynn; Oddone Paolucci, Elizabeth; Donnon, Tyrone L.; Buie, Donald
    All surgical procedures come with a risk of adverse events (AEs). To improve patient safety and prevent similar errors in the future, errors must be acknowledged and addressed. In this study a meta-analysis of patient safety literature in surgery was conducted and a Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practice (KAP) assessment survey of Calgary academic surgeons was performed.Results of the meta-analysis demonstrated a preventable adverse event (PAE) rate of 10.5 PAEs per 100 patients across all surgical specialties and a preventable death rate of 0.5 per 100 surgical patients. The KAP survey assessment demonstrated that 20% of surgeons could correctly identify the definition of both AE and error. Participants reported the factors contributing to an error to be multifactorial. The most frequently used methods to teach patient safety were Morbidity and Mortality rounds and individual feedback. Less than 25% of surgeons track their own AE rate. These results have implications for surgical postgraduate education, as well as for surgical practice in Canada. Recommendations are made for the development of a formal patient safety curriculum for all surgical trainees, with the aim of decreasing the number of errors. In addition, it is essential that more high-quality studies that include reproducible methods and consistent definitions of AEs and errors be conducted.