Using research to make health care safer.
There is a fine balance that needs to be maintained between research and improvement in safety and quality in health care - when do we need more research and when can we just get on with it? The moral imperative to improve care may have been a distractor, preventing adequate attention to research. Three research areas are proposed as current priorities for patient safety: getting evidence into practice, measurement of safety, and the evaluation of complex interventions. A focus on these areas should ensure that research becomes more central to the process of making health care safer.
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia. christine.jorm@safetyandquality.gov.au
Christine M
CM
Jorm
Sarah J
SJ
White
D001315:Australia; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D006801:Humans; D019300:Medical Errors / Q000517:prevention & control; D017751:Safety Management