Human factors paradigm and customer care perceptions.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Quality and Safety
• Human Factors Engineering
• Patient Experience

Background:

• Customer care (CC) is often debated in healthcare, with concerns about its potential to undermine patient safety.
• A human factors (HF) framework offers a structured approach to analyze complex systems and their impact on safety outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the direct relationship between customer care (CC) and patient safety.
• To apply a human factors (HF) theoretical framework to understand this connection within healthcare.

Main Methods:

• The study utilized data from an online questionnaire distributed to healthcare workers (n=373).
• Thematic analysis was employed, guided by Vincent et al.'s (1998) HF framework, which encompasses seven key areas impacting patient safety.

Main Results:

• The analysis covered all seven areas of the HF framework, with the work environment (40.7%) and organization/management (28.8%) being most frequently cited.
• Significant references were also found for team factors (10.2%), individual (6.7%), patient (6.0%), tasks (4.2%), and institutional context (3.5%).
• The findings indicate a clear congruence between perceptions of CC and patient safety within the HF framework.

Conclusions:

• Customer care can be integrated into healthcare in a manner that supports, rather than compromises, patient safety.
• This perspective challenges the notion of healthcare consumerism potentially harming patient safety.
• The study offers a novel viewpoint on the CC-patient safety link, potentially shifting healthcare perceptions.