Implementing a Safety Program to Improve Nurses’ Performance in Pediatric Health Care Settings

Abstract

Pediatric patient safety is a public health concern. Implementing unsafe practices, taking unnecessary risks, and making nursing practice errors can contribute to pediatric patient injury, disability, poor prognosis, or even death. Our study aimed to investigate the effect of implementing a safety program to improve nurses’ performance in pediatric health care settings. Our study had a quasi-experimental design and was conducted at the National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt. Our sample population included a convenience sample of 36 pediatric nurses and 36 pediatric patients. We used three tools to collect data. The first tool was a structured interview questionnaire we administered before and after implementing a safety program for pediatric nurses at the health care setting. The second tool was an observational checklist to assess the nurses’ practices related to pediatric patient safety. The third tool was an assessment sheet to determine the effectiveness of the safety program. We found there was a statistically significant correlation between the knowledge and practice competency of the nurses before and after implementing the safety program (r = 0.76, p < .000). We also found that after implementing the safety program, the length of the patients’ hospital stay, number of unscheduled hospitalizations, need for additional medications, and number of complications decreased among the pediatric patient participants. We recommend implementing similar safety education and training programs for nurses in other facilities to update their knowledge and improve their practices related to pediatric patient safety.