Safety Culture Evaluation in Sarawak General Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Study Using Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ).

BACKGROUND

Patient safety involves proactive and systematic efforts within healthcare settings to prevent harm to patients during medical care. Globally, healthcare organisations prioritise patient safety as a key factor in quality and safety initiatives.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to investigate the patient safety culture at Sarawak General Hospital (SGH), a tertiary referral hospital in Malaysia.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted at SGH from May 2022 to August 2022 using the Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ). The survey included 767 hospital staff members, such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other clinical personnel, achieving a response rate of 84.2% (646 respondents). Statistical analysis was performed using Jamovi 2.3.28.

RESULTS

The overall mean SAQ score was 65.8±15.0, with a positive response rate of 31.3%. Most domain scores were higher than benchmark scores (65.7% to 72.2%), except for the stress recognition domain. Among the domains, job satisfaction recorded the highest mean score (71.7±23.3) and the highest positive response rate (53.4%), indicating high levels of contentment among healthcare workers. Conversely, the working condition domain demonstrates significant room for improvement.

CONCLUSION

Generally, the patient safety culture at SGH is satisfactory, with most domain scores exceeding benchmark levels.