Governing patient safety in field hospitals: lessons for the future

[摘要] Across the world, the COVID-19 pandemichas brought an unprecedented risk to thedelivery and availability of healthcare. Ashospital admissions soared with patientshospitalised with the effects of the virus,there was a growing demand to increasebed capacity. To increase this supply, fieldhospitals were commissioned. In the UK,nine field hospitals were commissioned, withtheir objectives to reduce deaths and freecapacity in acute providers and allow referring hospitals to maintain flow in and outof their surge capacity.1 When the NationalHealth Service (NHS) Nightingale HospitalLondon opened, it had a capacity of 500 beds,increasing to 4000–5000 if needed. Likewise,the NHS Nightingale Hospital Birminghamhad a capacity of 596 and increasing to 4500.These field hospitals were set up rapidly, ina matter of months, with a focus on performance and operationalisation. However, akey question to consider and reflect on is howpatient safety has been governed in this newdelivery of care. Reflecting on this can ensurethat safety and quality remains at the forefront of any future field hospitals.

[学科分类] 药学

[关键词] patient safety;quality improvement;safety culture;human factors