Unacceptable behaviours between healthcare workers: just the tip of the patient safety iceberg

Since the publication of the 1999 ‘To Err is Human’ report by the Institute of Medicine, healthcare researchers have been attentive to factors potentially associated with iatrogenic risk, or in other words medical care that exacerbates or complicates an existing patient condition. While studies have explored a variety of patient factors (eg, age and weight of neonates1) and situational constraints (eg, staffing ratios and healthcare worker (HCW) sleep deprivation2 3), the risks posed by negative interpersonal interactions in healthcare contexts remain understudied and poorly understood. It is therefore timely that in BMJ Quality & Safety, Guo and colleagues4 present a systematic review of research examining the effects of unacceptable behaviours between HCWs on clinical performance and patient outcomes. Guo and colleagues’4 findings present an important step in raising awareness of the risks posed by negative interpersonal interactions among HCWs,...
Source: BMJ Quality and Safety - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Editorials Source Type: research