Promoting a Patient-Centered Understanding of Safety in Acute Mental Health Wards: A User-Centered Design Approach to...

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Patient Safety
• Mental Health Services

Background:

• Acute mental health services face significant safety incidents impacting patients and staff.
• There is a critical need for interventions that incorporate the patient perspective on safety.
• Digital technologies present a promising avenue for addressing this need.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and develop WardSonar, a digital real-time monitoring tool.
• To collect daily patient perceptions of safety in acute mental health wards.
• To present the design, development process, logic model, and programme theory of WardSonar.

Main Methods:

• Synthesized findings from a systematic review, evidence scan, and interviews with patients (n=8) and health professionals (n=17).
• Engaged stakeholders throughout the design and development process.
• Utilized iterative design activities and discussions with patients, staff, and stakeholder groups to refine the prototype.

Main Results:

• Developed a three-component digital monitoring tool (WardSonar).
• Includes a patient interface for inputting ward perceptions, a staff dashboard for data interrogation, and a public-facing ward interface.
• The technology is available as open-source code.

Conclusions:

• WardSonar supports innovative approaches to measuring and monitoring safety in mental health settings.
• The tool enables proactive staff response to changes in the clinical environment based on patient feedback.
• Enhances patient safety by integrating real-time patient perceptions into care management.