16 September 2024
World Patient Safety Day (WPSD) is one of the 11 days that member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) have mandated as official global public health days. WPSD has been observed since 2019, following the adoption by the seventy-second World Health Assembly (WHA) of the resolution on ¡°Global action on patient safety¡± (). This resolution was a critical milestone that united leaders, health workers, scientists, patients and patient advocates from around the world under the common objective of making patient safety the foundation of health systems.
Ensuring patient safety is foundational for ensuring high-quality care and improved health outcomes. It is essential for progress towards achieving universal health coverage, and Sustainable Development Goal 3, which focuses on ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all. The establishment of WPSD played a critical role in prioritizing patient safety as a policy objective within countries and galvanizing international efforts to reduce preventable harm in health care.
Each year, a specific patient safety issue requiring global attention and concerted action is chosen to be featured as a theme for WPSD. In 2024, the focus is on diagnostic safety¡ªa pivotal element in the health-care journey of patients, fundamental to the core of health-care delivery, yet often overlooked as an aspect of patient safety. This theme aligns with the actions outlined in resolution WHA72.6 and the . Adopted in 2021, the Action Plan provides a strategic framework for stakeholders to improve patient safety, including diagnostic safety, through policy actions and the application of best practices at the point of care.
, including delayed, incorrect or missed diagnoses, are responsible for of preventable harm in health-care systems globally. There is potential for error at every step of the diagnostic process. Error can happen with any patient, involving any health professional; and it can happen in any setting and context, and at any level of care provision. Moreover, diagnostic errors can result from a broad range of factors, from lack of access to care and diagnostics, inadequate numbers of a competent health workforce, and care fragmentation¡ªwhich are major contributing factors in low- and middle-income countries¡ªto communication challenges, patient-related factors, technological limitations, cognitive biases, and breakdowns in systems and processes¡ªfor example by inadequate follow-up on test results.1
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has estimated that the impact of diagnostic errors in the treatment of chronic illnesses represents of the health expenditure of most OECD countries.
The are as follows:
1. Raise global awareness of errors in diagnosis contributing to patient harm and emphasize the pivotal role of correct, timely and safe diagnosis in improving patient safety.
2. Give prominence to diagnostic safety in patient safety policy and clinical practice at all levels of health care, aligned with the .
3. Foster collaboration among policymakers, health-care leaders, health workers, patient organizations and other stakeholders in advancing correct, timely and safe diagnosis.
4. Empower patients and families to actively engage with health workers and health-care leaders to improve diagnostic processes.
Since the 2019 adoption of on ¡°Global action on patient safety¡±, States are increasingly recognizing patient safety as a key policy priority and are committing to working towards achieving the due to unsafe health care globally. The demonstrated commendable progress made by many countries, but also highlighted that many strategies require attention and further improvement. For example, of WHO member States actively participate in annual campaigns and events organized around WPSD, but at the same time, only of countries have launched a focused campaign to provide information and education to patients and families for their involvement in self-care and empower them for the shared decision-making that is crucial to their ability to .
In recognition of the importance of access to safe diagnostic tools and services in avoiding preventable harm and achieving positive patient outcomes, a resolution to (WHA76.5) was adopted by the . As a result, WHO established the as a mechanism for collaboration between all WHO programmes and across the three levels of the organization. Resolution WHA76.5 includes a request for WHO to collect data related to affordability, availability and access to essential diagnostics; support countries with technical advice; facilitate the identification of relevant diagnostics for comprehensive services; develop policies for health technology; support the development of research; strengthen regulatory systems; support the development of national diagnostics lists; and develop or strengthen national, regional and global laboratory networks. Without ensuring access to safe diagnostic tests and services, health workers cannot make accurate and safe diagnoses that are key to preventing avoidable harm.
Through the slogan ¡°Get it right, make it safe!¡±, WHO calls for coordinated efforts to significantly reduce diagnostic errors, recognizing the importance of fostering collaboration between governments, health-care providers, patients and families to build resilient systems. These efforts involve comprehensive interventions across different system elements, including improvement in system design and processes; creating an enabling environment with a focus on safety culture, effective teamwork and communication; building competencies of health workers; engaging and empowering patients and their families; and ensuring access to diagnostics and technology. It is equally important to ensure that interventions happen at macro- (policy), meso- (organizational) and micro- (point-of-care) levels.
calls for a sustained global commitment to reducing diagnostic errors, because diagnostic safety is not just a technical requirement but a moral obligation to ensure that no patient is harmed due to preventable errors.
Note
1 Mark L. Graber and others, "Cognitive interventions to reduce diagnostic error: a narrative review", BMJ Quality & Safety, vol. 21, No. 7 (July 2012), pp. 535¨C557. Available at .
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