Patient Safety Attitude among Healthcare Workers and Its Determinants: A Systematic Review

Healthcare providers with positive attitudes toward patient safety demonstrate a robust safety culture within their institutions. Embedding safety practices into daily workflows can help to minimise medical errors, enhance patient outcomes and maximise resource efficiency. Fostering a strong safety culture is vital for delivering superior care; therefore this study aimed to evaluate patient safety attitudes across specific domains and to identify associated factors among healthcare providers, based on findings from the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). We conducted electronic searches using Ovid and PubMed, utilising precise terms pertinent to evaluation, patient safety perceptions and healthcare professionals. We incorporated studies that utilised the SAQ as a metric to evaluate the patient safety culture inside their healthcare organisations. We thoroughly confirmed that the studies satisfied the inclusion criteria and rigorously evaluated their quality. Fifteen studies met our inclusion criteria. Among the six dimensions of SAQ, job satisfaction had the highest mean positive attitude, ranging from 60 to 81.3, while teamwork had the lowest mean score, ranging from 48.9 to 77.2. The mean score for positive attitude, which ranged from 45.2 to 69.6, pertained to the perception of management. Based on review, there was a significant relationship between the characteristics of the healthcare personnel (age, gender, job position, work experience and history of safety training) and patient safety attitude. The findings provide valuable insights for developing patient safety policies and focusing on specific areas to enhance patient safety and improve clinical outcomes in healthcare organisations. Promotion a culture of patient safety is essential for advancing global patient safety standards. Collaboration among policymakers, healthcare professionals and medical educators is crucial for fostering a strong safety culture.