Educating the next generation of health care professionals in the domain of patient safety

Abstract

The Association of the American Medical Colleges has called for a collaborative effort to ensure that the next generation of physicians is adequately prepared to recognize the sources of error in medical practice, to acknowledge their own vulnerability to error, and to engage in fully in the process of continuous quality improvement (Cohen, 1999). Efforts to increase the awareness concerning patient safety are on-going in at the graduate level, as it is indicated in the six ACGME competencies. However, how should patient safety education be incorporated into the curriculum? This presentation will provide a brief overview of patient safety education and explore various methods for its integration into medical education, clinical practice and training. Furthermore, it will highlight the challenges for educating the next generation of health care professionals taking into consideration the current educational climate and practice patterns, importance of inter-professional education and collaboration, the educational resources and the role of technology, and the need for nurturing a culture that promotes critical inquiry and generates social transformation