Identifying and Mitigating Latent Safety Threats in Hospitals

This document is a guide that outlines common latent safety threats in hospitals and the mitigating actions that can be taken to address them. It describes how simulation has been utilized to uncover these threats, which are characterized as 'accidents waiting to happen' and have a significant impact on patient safety. The guide presents various latent safety threats, including issues related to medication safety, equipment availability, teamwork, communication, knowledge gaps, and environmental factors. For each identified threat, the document details specific actions that hospitals can implement to mitigate these risks, such as creating standardized medication lists, conducting simulations for team training, and improving the visibility of vital signs monitors. The guide serves as a resource for hospitals to explore their own latent safety threats and encourages the use of simulations as a method to test and determine effective solutions tailored to their unique needs.