ISLAMABAD : March 29,2023: The ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination in collaboration with WHO Country Office Pakistan organized a 1st Technical Group Meeting on Patient Safety and Quality of Care. Around 45 participants joined from Provincial Health Departments, Healthcare Commissions, Directors of Quality & Patient Safety Departments, Academia, Drug Regulatory Authority Pakistan, Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, Pakistan Nursing Council, College of Physician Surgeon Pakistan, and private sectors.
The concept of patient safety is as old as medicine itself, with Hippocrates’ dictum, ‘First, do no harm’. However, today, there is still a huge burden of harm in health care, affecting millions of people every year. In fact, unsafe care has become one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality globally, at least 5 patients die every minute because of unsafe care. In terms of morbidity, 1 in 10 patients is harmed by safety lapses during their hospital care and that is, in high-income countries. Patient safety failures are among the 10 leading causes of death and disability in the world.
In low- and middle-income countries, around 2.6 million Patients die due to patient safety issues every year Estimated 134 million healthcare-associated adverse events occur annually in hospitals, in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs. With the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, patient safety has become an even more crucial area for international cooperation.
To respond to this global challenge, in 2019, 72nd World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted resolution 72.6 on “Global action on patient safety”. This resolution recognizes patient safety as a health priority and an essential component to strengthen healthcare systems to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
Follow up to this resolution, the 74th WHA endorsed Global Patient Safety Action Plan for the decade 2021-2030. The World Health Assembly also requested the Member States to report back on progress in the implementation of the global action plan to the Seventy-sixth World Health Assembly in 2023 and thereafter every two years until 2031
In Pakistan, Unfortunately, reliable data on patient safety is not available. A small research study on General Practice of Patient Safety & adverse events conducted in 2021 in five sample hospitals found that diagnostic errors comprise 40%, while surgical procedure-related errors 32%, complications of childbirth 15%, adverse medication-related events 9%, and healthcare-associated infection 4% of all adverse events. These results are the tip of the iceberg. There is a dire need to develop a system for recording & reporting to generate reliable data in Pakistan.
In this spirit, the development of the National Framework on Patient Safety & Quality will help to mitigate the challenges and build a culture of patient safety in Pakistan.
An overarching national framework & National Standards on Patient Safety & Quality of Care in Pakistan will improve patient safety at all levels of healthcare across all modalities of health provision.
Dr Palitha Mahipala Head of WHO Pakistan emphasized that to transform patient safety, we must embrace a culture of safety where we report openly, learn from our mistakes, and continually improve our systems. This year’s theme of World Patient Safety Day 2023 is “Engaging patients for patient safety”. This highlights the central role that patients, their families, and caregivers play in advancing safe care. Evidence shows that when patients are treated as partners in their care, significant gains are made in safety, patient satisfaction, and health outcomes. It is critical to engage with patients and families so they can play an active role in their own care, stated by Dr Palitha Mahipala during his inaugural speech.
Patient safety is a journey, not a destination.
Dr Baseer Achakzai, Director General Health, MoNHSR&C, we need to invest in patient safety as part of the commitment to Universal Health Coverage and Health Security and we have to strengthen the systems for reporting and learning from medical errors. That means clear policies and an open culture that allows people to report adverse events, without fear of retribution. We also need to strengthen the capacities of their health workforce, so every health worker knows the best practices for keeping patients and themselves safe.
“This is the time to act and act quickly to build a culture of safe care” quoted by Dr Baseer Achakzai during his inaugural remarks.
He further appreciated the Provincial Department of Health for their continuing commitment to the patient safety journey and to take this agenda forward to ensure the provision of safe care.
