February 29, 2008

Surveying of patient safety culture to be launched

In early March, the MGH/MGPO Center for Quality and Safety (CQS) will launch a staff survey to assess providers' attitudes about safety dimensions at the MGH — including feelings about the general safety environment at the hospital, teamwork, staffing, support from MGH leadership and freedom to report safety issues. The survey questions will be based upon those developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

"This survey will serve as a valuable tool to guide the Center for Quality and Safety agenda moving forward," says Gregg Meyer, MD, senior vice president of the CQS. "Research has shown that a high patient safety culture is related to employee retention, satisfaction and improved clinical outcomes such as lower incidence of bloodstream infections."

MGH health care providers are strongly encouraged to complete the anonymous survey that will be mailed directly to staff. Respondents will have the option of logging onto a website to confidentially complete the survey online.

For more information about the survey, contact Akin Demehin, administrative director for the CQS, at ademehin@partners.org or Barry Kitch, MD, of the MGH Institute for Health Policy, at bkitch@partners.org.