Abertura na Comunicação e Resposta ao Erro Não Punitiva: Perceção dos Enfermeiros dos Departamentos Médico e Cirúrgico

Abstract

Introduction: Developing a culture focused on patient safety requires the leadership's engagement in creating the conditions for the construction of positive nursing practice and healthy learning environments. This also involves a culture of non-punishment in the face of errors and open communication. Objectives: Analyze nurses' perceptions, from the medical and surgical departments, of the “Communication Openness” and “Nonpunitive response to error” dimensions in patient safety culture. Material and methods: A quantitative, descriptive, and cross-sectional study was conducted in a northern Portugal hospital center between June and November 2022. The Portuguese version of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture was used as a data collection tool. Simple descriptive statistical methods were used for data analysis. Ethical and legal procedures were ensured. Results: The sample consisted of 243 nurses from medical and surgical departments, mostly female (89.3%) and graduates (90.1%). The “Communication Openness” was considered a neutral dimension, with 67.7% of positive responses in the medical department and 64.0% in the surgical department. The “Nonpunitive response to error” was considered a weak dimension, with 36.8% and 35.3% positive responses in the medical and surgery departments, respectively. Conclusions: In the nurses' perception, the dimensions analyzed were considered neutral and weak areas in the patient safety culture. Therefore, it is considered essential to intervene in the context of communication and leadership to improve the safety culture and nursing practice environments.