Examining the Relationship Among Ambulatory Surgical Settings Work Environment, Nurses' Characteristics, and...

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Practice
• Patient Safety

Background:

• Ambulatory surgical settings are critical for same-day procedures.
• Understanding the work environment's impact on medication error reporting is vital for patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the work environment in ambulatory surgery settings, focusing on leadership style and safety climate.
• To investigate the correlation between work environment factors and nurses' willingness to report medication errors.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive correlational survey design was employed.
• Data were collected from 40 registered nurses in four ambulatory surgical settings in Northeast Ohio.

Main Results:

• Nurse manager leadership styles accounted for 44% of the variance in medication error reporting willingness.
• Safety climate dimensions explained 50% of the variance in nurses' willingness to report medication errors.

Conclusions:

• Enhancing nurse manager leadership through training is recommended.
• Improving safety climate, specifically error feedback and organizational learning, is crucial to boost medication error reporting.