A STUDY ON DETERMINATION OF MEDICAL ERROR ATTITUDES OF PHYSICIANS AND NURSES

Abstract

Aim: Medical errors are an important component of patient safety. This study was conducted to determine the medical error attitudes of physicians and nurses.

Method: In this descriptive and cross-sectional study, data were collected with personal information form and “Attitudes towards Medical Errors Scale”. A total of 203 physicians and nurses working in a public hospital, participated in the study. Data were evaluated using descriptive statistics and nonparametric tests in SPSS.21 program.

Result: 37.4% of the participants were physicians and 62.6% were nurses. 29.6% of them are undergraduate graduates, 71.4% of them are women, 59.6% of them are between the ages of 31-40 and 76.8 of them work in internal units, 61.1% of them work under 40 hours per week. 53.2% of them have less than 10 years of professional working time. The mean score of the participants from the medical error scale was 3.55 ± 0.36 and sub-dimensions of medical error perception, approach to medical error and causes of medical error were as follows; 3.09 ± 0.73; 3.56 ± 0.46; 3.70 ± 0.45.

Conclusion: It was found that medical error awareness of physicians and nurses was high.