Advancing the Future of Patient Safety in Oncology: Implications of Patient Safety Education on Cancer Care Delivery

Emerging challenges in health care delivery demand systems of clinical practice capable of ensuring safe and reliable patient care. Oncology in particular is recognized for its high degree of complexity and potential for adverse events. New models of student education hold promise for producing a health care workforce armed with skills in patient safety. This training may have a particular impact on risk reduction in cancer care and ultimately improve clinical performance in oncology. A 1-day student program focused on the principles of patient safety was developed for the third-year medical school class. The core curriculum consisted of an online patient safety module, root cause analyses of actual patient safety events, and simulation scenarios designed to invoke patient safety skills. The program was successfully implemented and received an average of 4.2/5 on evaluations pertaining to its importance and effectiveness. Student surveys demonstrated that 59 % of students were not previously aware of system-based approaches to improving safety, 51 % of students had witnessed or experienced a patient safety issue, while only 10 % reported these events. Students reported feeling more empowered to act on patient safety issues as a result of the program. Educational programs can provide medical students with a foundation for skill development in medical error reduction and help enhance an organization’s culture of safety. This has the potential to reduce adverse events in complex patient care settings such as clinical oncology.