World Patient Safety Day
17 September 2024
Get it right, make it safe!
World Patient Safety Day brings together patients, families, caregivers, communities, health workers, policymakers and health care leaders to show their commitment to patient safety.
This year the theme is “Improving diagnosis for patient safety” with the slogan “Get it right, make it safe!”, highlighting the critical importance of correct and timely diagnosis in ensuring patient safety and improving health outcomes.
A diagnosis identifies a patient’s health problem, and is key to accessing the care and treatment they need. Diagnoses can be missed, delayed, incorrect or miscommunicated at any stage. In fact, almost all adults will experience at least one diagnostic error in their lifetime.
Errors can result from several factors, such as shortage of trained health workers, lack of tests, malfunctioning equipment, breakdowns in communication, health care workers’ cognitive biases or incomplete patient symptoms and medical history. Correct and timely diagnosis is a team effort. Everyone along the way has a role to play. Let's work together to get it right, make it safe!
