[jeder-fehler-zaehlt.de: Content of and prospective benefits from a critical incident reporting and learning system...

Critical incident reporting and learning systems (CIRS) have been recommended as an instrument to promote patient safety for a long time. However, both their scientific value and their actual impact have been disputed. The nationwide German CIRS for primary care has been in operation since September 2004. Incident reports are available online, and the question is how to make use of this large database to promote patient safety. A descriptive analysis of the content was performed, classifying, in particular, types of error and contributing factors. Its usage is presented for the period from 2004 to 2013 where a total of 483 complete reports have been recorded. Their severity ranges from 35.6 % with no tangible harm to patients to 14.6 % with important harm (or errors contributing to mortality). The majority of them (74.2 %) were process errors, compared to 25.8 % knowledge/skills errors. The main areas involved were treatment/medication (54.2 %) and diagnosis/tests (16.4 %). The results of the analysis of the CIRS cannot be used as an epidemiological data source. And yet they will generate hypotheses for further research in the field of patient safety. Moreover, they will enable practice teams to make themselves familiar with and learn from critical incident analysis. In spite of the specific difficulties in ambulatory care, CIRS should be promoted in this sector to enable learning. Participation in CIRS can be increased by enhanced feedback.