By Denise McCuaig, Executive Director, Healthcare Transformation & Capacity Building
New Hospital Harm data shows that 1 in every 17 hospital stays in Canada involved patient harm in 2023-2024, highlighting the ongoing need to make healthcare safer for everyone. Reported by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), the rate of hospital harm has held steady at 6% for the past four years after increasing in 2020.
A 2016-2018 data analysis, featured in a report released alongside this year’s Hospital Harm Indicator annual update, shows how language impacts patient safety.Patients who didn’t speak English or French were 30% more likely to experience a safety event, according to CIHI.
Effective communication and engaging patients and their caregivers are key to providing safe, high-quality healthcare. When patients can share their needs and preferences, they become active partners in their care, building trust and teamwork with healthcare providers. This partnership is essential for improving safety, promoting person-centred, equitable care environments and minimizing harm.
But language is just one factor in creating safer care. Harm affects some groups more than others, and healthcare can add to existing inequities. It's crucial to consider all aspects of a patient's life—such as religion, age, gender and ethnicity—and how these factors influence the way care is delivered and received. Harm also isn't only physical; it can be psychological, social and spiritual too.
A more complete approach to safety sees people as whole individuals with their own identities, needs and experiences. We can make healthcare safer by empowering patients, caregivers and healthcare providers to work together to prevent and address harm.
How to prioritize safety through patient engagement:
- Create an engaging environment: Engagement-capable environments value the wisdom and experiences of patients and their essential care partners, fostering a culture of patient- and family-centred care that helps improve quality, safety and equitable outcomes.
- Foster inclusive communication: Inclusive communication is a key skill for healthcare providers, helping reduce misunderstandings, bridge communication gaps and make all patients feel valued.
- Recognize different forms of harm: Safety extends beyond the physical; psychological, social and spiritual well-being are also important. Engaging diverse individuals with lived experiences and providing trauma-informed care can help reduce harm, no matter what form.
- Learn to prevent harm: Taking a proactive approach to patient safety enables healthcare providers to prevent harm before it happens. Understanding how safety incidents affect patients, caregivers and healthcare teams can lead to better safety outcomes.
Ready to take action to broaden your view of patient safety and healthcare harm? Learn more about how to participate in Canadian Patient Safety Week 2024.
