Oxford Professional Practice: Handbook of Patient Safety

Book excerpt: Every day, doctors are faced with the challenge of keeping the people they treat safe and free from harm. Patient safety is a relatively new field of study, but the field is expanding and there is now better understanding of what is needed to measure and achieve safety for patients. The Handbook of Patient Safety will empower doctors, nurses and other professionals to be able to develop safe clinical processes that allow proactive management and minimisation of risk, so that people are not harmed when they receive clinical care. It gives the rationale for patient safety, the theories behind the science of patient safety and then the practical methods that frontline staff can use on a daily basis to decrease harm. Pocket sized and practical, this handbook is the ideal guide to support frontline staff and trainees, as well as all allied professionals in the name of patient safety. It reflects the World Health Organization's Patient Safety Curriculum and is written by international experts in their field who have specialist interests and direct expertise in dealing with patient safety issues. This book will demystify what is often seen as a complex topic, helping doctors understand the methods needed to provide safe care.