Patient and family engagement is a pivotal strategy to advance safety in healthcare. As users of the healthcare system with first-hand experience of the entire patient journey, the perspectives of patients, families and caregivers are invaluable in improving patient safety.
The impact of meaningful patient engagement is remarkable, with studies showing a potential reduction in the burden of harm by up to 15%, saving countless lives and billions of dollars each year.
Therefore, patient and family engagement has been embedded as a fundamental principle in the World Health Assembly resolution (WHA72.6) on Global action on patient safety and in the Global Patient Safety Action Plan 2021-2030 on World Patient Safety Day 2023 is dedicated to the theme “Engaging patients for patient safety” and the slogan “Elevate the voice of patients!”.
17th September, 2023, the day aims to influence stakeholders including patients, families, policymakers, health care leaders, health workers and patient organizations to work collaboratively towards co-designing health care policies and safety interventions that truly reflect the needs and preferences of patients, ultimately enhancing healthcare safety globally
