Nursing Home Survey on Patient Safety Culture

Table 1-1. Patient Safety Culture Composites and Definitions

Patient Safety Culture Composite	Definition: The extent to which...
1. Communication openness	Staff speak up about problems and their ideas and suggestions are valued
2. Compliance with procedures	Staff follow standard procedures to care for residents and do not use shortcuts to get their work done faster
3. Feedback and communication about incidents	Staff discuss ways to keep residents safe, tell someone if they see something that might harm a resident, and talk about ways to keep incidents from happening again
4. Handoffs	Staff are told what they need to know before taking care of a resident or when a resident's care plan changes, and have all the information they need when residents are transferred from the hospital
5. Management support for resident safety	Nursing home management provides a work climate that promotes resident safety and shows that resident safety is a top priority
6. Nonpunitive response to mistakes	Staff are not blamed when a resident is harmed, are treated fairly when they make mistakes, and feel safe reporting their mistakes
7. Organizational learning	There is a learning culture that facilitates making changes to improve resident safety and evaluates changes for effectiveness
8. Overall perceptions of resident safety	Residents are well cared for and safe
9. Staffing	There are enough staff to handle the workload, meet residents' needs during shift changes, and keep residents safe because there is not much staff turnover
10. Supervisor expectations and actions promoting safety	Supervisors listen to staff ideas and suggestions about resident safety, praise staff who follow the right procedures, and pay attention to safety problems
11. Teamwork	Staff treat each other with respect, support one another, and feel like they are part of a team
12. Training and skills	Staff get the training they need, have enough training on how to handle difficult residents, and understand the training they get in the nursing home

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Page last reviewed October 2014
Page originally created August 2011

Internet Citation: Table 1-1. Patient Safety Culture Composites and Definitions. Content last reviewed October 2014. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. https://archive.ahrq.gov/professionals/quality-patient-safety/patientsafetyculture/nursing-home/2011/nhsurvtab1-1.html