Patient Safety Week was an awareness raising week run by the Health Quality & Safety Commission as part of the Open for better care campaign.
The purpose of the week, which ran from 3 to 9 November 2014, was to:
- create focus, energy, momentum and raise awareness of the importance of patient safety through a concentrated burst of activities over a week
- distribute and share the resources available and celebrate and share positive and successful initiatives so more New Zealanders can learn about and become enthusiasts for patient safety
- establish and strengthen relationships with organisations and networks interested in promoting consumers as partners in care to increase knowledge and skills
- create a community of patient safety week supporters and champions for future years.
The three main audiences for Patient Safety Week were:
- providers of health and disability services across primary, secondary and tertiary care
- the general public who, as patients, people with disabilities and/or family members, access health and disability services
- influential organisations and individuals who want to assist the Commission in the delivery of Patient Safety Week, and become partners in the design and implementation of future weeks.
The week had three complementary focuses:
- Workshops with Dr James P Bagian, human factors specialist – held in Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin.
- Launch of Let’s PLAN for better care (primary care) and a training resource for consumer representatives
- Promotions in secondary care.
Patient Safety Week came just after the release of the Commission’s serious adverse events report, which set the scene about the importance of an ongoing focus on patient safety.