What we are doing
Patient safety is a key priority for the RCP. We believe there must be a shift in the NHS from a place where there is an assumption that care is safe until something goes wrong, to a team working environment that minimises the chances of harm, builds in safety to daily practice, and is open, supportive and facilitates learning when error occurs.
The RCP works in a number of ways to improve patient safety:
- Influence the national agenda on patient safety to ensure that the regulatory, policy, and political landscape supports physicians and their teams to deliver safe healthcare.
- Support physicians and their teams with the information needed to identify risks to patient safety or a patient safety incident.
- Build the capability of physicians and their teams to work together for safer care, including responding to identified patient safety risks or incidents.
- Support physicians and their teams to review systems and processes and build prevention into their local healthcare system.
- Support doctors who have been affected by or need to raise patient safety issues.
- Clarifying national priorities, and work with others to support implementation.
