Nurses’ perceptions of patient safety competency: A cross-sectional study of relationships with occurrence and reporting of adverse events

Abstract

Although, strengthening patient safety competencies in nursing has been emphasized for enhancing quality care and patient safety. However, little is known about the association of nurses’ perceptions of patient safety competency with adverse nurse outcomes in Iranian hospitals. This study aimed to measure nurses’ levels of patient safety competency in the hospitals of Iran and examines the relationship between patient safety competency with the occurrence and reporting of adverse events (AEs). This cross-sectional research was applied in eight teaching hospitals in Tehran, Iran, between August and December 2021. A sample of 511 nurses was randomly selected using the table of random numbers. The validated Patient Safety Competency Self-Evaluation questionnaire was used. Furthermore, two questions were used to measure the incidence and reporting of AEs. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, and two binary logistic regression models through SPSS version 24.0. The mean patient safety competency score was 3.34 (SD = 0.74) out of 5.0; 41.5% of nurses rated their patient safety competency as less than 3. Among subscales, “skills of patient safety” scores were the highest, and “knowledge of patient safety” scores were the lowest. Nurses with higher Knowledge and Attitude scores were less likely to experience the occurrence of AEs (OR = 1.50 and OR = 0.58, respectively). Regarding AEs reporting, nurses with higher Skill and Attitude scores were 2.84 and 1.67 times, respectively, more likely to report AEs (OR = 2.84 and OR = 3.44, respectively). Our results provide evidence that enhancing PSC leads to reduced incidence of AEs and increased nurses’ performance in reporting. Therefore, it is recommended that managers of hospitals should enhance the patient safety competency of nurses in incidents and reporting of patient safety adverse outcomes through quality expansion and training. Additionally, researchers should carry out further research to confirm the findings of the current study and identify interventions that would strengthen patient safety competencies and reduce the occurrence of AEs, and rise their reporting among nurses.