Although providers, patients and policymakers look to patient safety incident records as a valuable source of information to promote accountability and improve safety culture, the amount of available reports is often limited. Limited staff reporting of patient safety incidents can be attributed to fear of blame, uncertainly regarding the impact the report will have and the complexity of reporting interfaces.
Researchers from the Imperial College of London's Centre for Health Policy are testing a new application called CareReport in the hopes of changing the culture and stigma that surrounds patient safety incident reporting.
CareReport incorporates four principles into its design: An inexpensive platform that is functional with minimal resources; a user-centered, inviting design that promotes staff usage; an information-capture system that is improvement-oriented, focusing on pertinent details that are important to providers and patients; and an interface capable of generating meaningful feedback.
DigitalStitch, the company developing the app in conjunction with the Centre for Health Policy, displayed CareReport at the World Innovation Summit for Health in Doha, Qatar in February 2015.