Overview:
For the sixth year in a row, the World Health Organization celebrates World Patient Safety Day on 17 September each year. 134 million adverse events occur annually in low- and middle-income countries due to unsafe care, which causes 2.6 million deaths. Awareness must be raised about the active participation of patients and their families in improving the safety of the healthcare provided.
Objectives:
- Raise community awareness of the need for effective patient, family and caregiver engagement to improve patient safety.
- Call for urgent action by all partners on patient and family engagement, in line with the Global Action Plan on Patient Safety 2021-2030.
Facts
- Active patient engagement can reduce damages in healthcare by 15%, reducing annual medical costs.
- Patients who participate in healthcare have been shown to experience 17% fewer harms.
- One in ten patients is harmed by unsafe healthcare.
Globally: September 17th, 2024
Locally: Rabi' al-Awwal 14th, 1446H
References:
WHO - Media Centre - World Patient Safety Day 2023.
WHO - News - World Patient Safety Day 2023.
WHO - World Patient Safety Day 2023: Engaging patients for their safety.