Nurses’ Experiences with Disclosure of Patient Safety Incidents: A Qualitative Study

Figures & data

Table 1 Participants (N=14)

Characteristics		n (%) or Mean±SD
Gender	Male	1 (7.2)
	Female	13 (92.8)
Age (year)		35.86±7.18
Clinical career (year)		12.55±7.36
Education	Bachelor’s degree	10 (71.4)
	Master’s degree	4 (28.6)
Marital status	Married	6 (42.9)
	Unmarried	8 (57.1)
Position	General nurse	9 (64.3)
	Head nurse	5 (35.7)
Working setting	Ward	8 (57.1)
	Intensive care unit	5 (35.7)
	Operating room	1 (7.2)

Table 2 Nurses’ Experiences with the Disclosure of Patient Safety Incidents

Theme Clusters	Themes
Mixed responses from patients and families	Mistrust and anger toward the nurse who made the error
	Patients’ heartbreaking self-accusations
	Patients’ and families’ understandings
Caught in a swirl of negative emotions	Fear of the impending future
	Feeling guilty about the patient
	Losing trust from colleagues
	Unfairly taking the blame
	Feeling helpless for not being able to resolve the problem on my own
Facing the reality that hinders disclosure	PSIs are bound to be repeated amid a poor work environment
	Patient safety culture that is still at an inchoate stage
	Lack of resources for protection and support of disclosure
	Events with unknown causes
	Unscrupulous healthcare professionals
	Relationships with physicians with inadequate collaboration and communication
Waiting for a breakthrough that would enable disclosure	Wanting disclosure protocol and training
	Wanting structural amelioration for PSI prevention
	Wanting a supportive culture that helps with and provides protection during the disclosure
	Expecting patients and caregivers to be companions