Website of the Department of Health

Building on the NHS patient safety agenda, the report applies the fresh, design approach and experience of other safety-critical industries to the NHS. It delivers the clear message that the NHS can and must think in terms of broad design and systems.

For example, before reorganising healthcare services, introducing new solutions to improve care and commissioning or purchasing healthcare products, it is vital to consider the wider safety and usability issues.

The needs of those who are involved, or who could potentially be involved, as well as the effect of changes in real-life situations and the impact on the broader health system must be assessed.

The Design for Patient Safety study provides a framework to help build a health service where all those who influence the delivery of care have the safety of patients at the front of their minds and where decisions increasingly take into account the wider implications for patient safety.