Quality and Patient Safety: Evaluating Patient Safety Culture among Healthcare Workers

Abstract

Introduction

The study focuses on evaluating patient safety culture among healthcare workers at Fortis Hospital Kolkata, emphasizing the importance of safety in healthcare systems where human life, technology, and teamwork intersect. Patient safety refers to preventing harm through practices such as proper communication, infection control, medication checks, and learning from errors. A strong safety culture requires open communication, non-punitive error reporting, teamwork, and continuous learning across all hospital levels.

The background highlights that despite advancements in healthcare, medical errors remain a global issue, often caused not by lack of skills but by system failures, communication gaps, workload, and cultural barriers. In India, although initiatives like NABH accreditation and WHO guidelines promote safety, challenges such as fear of punishment, hierarchical structures, and staff shortages still affect reporting and implementation.

The study aims to assess healthcare workers’ perceptions, teamwork, leadership support, communication, and barriers to reporting incidents, along with comparing views across doctors, nurses, technicians, and administrative staff. It also seeks to recommend improvements for strengthening safety culture at Fortis Hospital Kolkata.

The research uses a descriptive cross-sectional quantitative design with structured questionnaires, supported by some qualitative feedback. The study is conducted in Fortis Hospital Kolkata, a large tertiary care hospital with advanced facilities and a diverse workforce.

Conclusion

Overall, the study emphasizes that patient safety is not only about protocols and technology but about organizational culture, behavior, and leadership, and that improving safety culture can significantly reduce medical errors and enhance healthcare quality.

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2026 Hozrot Ali, Saumya Singh, Pasupulati Sai Teja, Dr. Kishore Kumar . This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.