Safety Culture and Human Factors in Foreign Object Management in Surgery

Area of Science:

• Medical Safety
• Surgical Procedures
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Addresses the persistent challenge of foreign object retention during surgical procedures.
• Examines critical human and safety culture factors contributing to this issue.

Purpose of the Study:

• Reports findings from the Foreign Object Retention-Reduction and Mitigation (FOR-RaM) research project.
• Aims to identify and understand challenges in foreign object management within Irish hospitals.
• Recommends strategies to mitigate foreign object retention.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative action research study conducted in surgical settings.
• Utilized semi-structured interviews with hospital staff.
• Included structured observations and Action Learning Sets for data validation.

Main Results:

• Identified key safety culture and human factors influencing foreign object management.
• Highlighted the impact of Goals, Processes, Culture, Teamwork, Information Management, and Training.
• Findings underscore the complexity of preventing retained surgical items.

Conclusions:

• Safety culture and human factors significantly impact foreign object management.
• Effective strategies require addressing systemic issues beyond individual actions.
• Recommendations focus on improving processes, teamwork, and training to enhance patient safety.