Table 6-3. Item-level Comparative Results

Item Survey Items By Composite  No. of hospitals &
No. of respond- ents
Average % Positive SD Survey Item % Positive Response
Min 10th  %ile 25th %ile Med- ian/
50th %ile
75th %ile 90th %ile Max
1. Teamwork Within Units                    
A1 1. People support one another in this unit. H = 381
N = 105,244
83% 10.25% 10% 75% 80% 84% 88% 92% 100%
A3 2. When a lot of work needs to be done quickly, we work together as a team to get the work done. H = 381
N = 105,651
85% 10.05% 12% 78% 82% 86% 90% 93% 100%
A4 3. In this unit, people treat each other with respect. H = 381
N = 105,564
76% 10.36% 16% 67% 72% 77% 81% 87% 100%
A11 4. When one area in this unit gets really busy, others help out. H = 381
N = 103,573
67% 9.87% 23% 57% 62% 68% 73% 78% 90%
2. Supervisor/Manager Expectations &  Actions Promoting Patient Safety                  
B1 1. My supv/mgr says a good word when he/she sees a job done according to established patient safety procedures. H = 382
N = 104,437
69% 10.36% 18% 59% 65% 70% 76% 81% 97%
B2 2. My supv/mgr seriously considers staff suggestions for improving patient safety. H = 382
N = 104,081
75% 10.36% 12% 65% 70% 75% 81% 85% 100%
B3    R 3. Whenever pressure builds up, my supv/mgr wants us to work faster, even if it means taking shortcuts. H = 376
N = 102,672
74% 8.42% 43% 64% 68% 74% 80% 85% 100%
B4    R 4. My supv/mgr overlooks patient safety problems that happen over and over. H = 382
N = 103,302
76% 9.20% 18% 67% 72% 76% 81% 86% 100%
3. Management Support for Patient Safety                    
F1 1. Hospital mgmt provides a work climate that promotes patient safety. H = 382
N = 103,978
79% 11.63% 15% 67% 74% 81% 87% 91% 100%
F8 2. The actions of hospital mgmt show that patient safety is a top priority. H = 382
N = 101,563
70% 11.64% 12% 56% 64% 72% 78% 83% 97%
F9
R
3. Hospital mgmt seems interested in patient safety only after an adverse event happens. H = 382
N = 100,870
59% 12.13% 18% 44% 51% 59% 66% 74% 93%
4.  Organizational Learning—Continuous Improvement                    
A6 1. We are actively doing things to improve patient safety. H = 382
N = 104,927
80% 10.59% 7% 71% 76% 81% 86% 90% 100%
A9 2. Mistakes have led to positive changes here. H = 382
N = 105,133
61% 9.79% 16% 50% 56% 61% 67% 72% 84%
A13 3. After we make changes to improve patient safety, we evaluate their effectiveness. H = 382
N = 102,857
66% 11.36% 12% 54% 60% 67% 73% 79% 93%
5. Overall Perceptions of Patient Safety                    
A10
R
1. It is just by chance that more serious mistakes don't happen around here. H = 382
N = 104,799
60% 11.06% 18% 47% 54% 60% 67% 74% 88%
A15 2. Patient safety is never sacrificed to get more work done. H = 382
N = 103,082
63% 11.04% 23% 51% 57% 63% 71% 78% 100%
A17
R
3. We have patient safety problems in this unit. H = 382
N = 103,021
62% 11.99% 15% 47% 55% 62% 69% 76% 91%
A18 4. Our procedures and systems are good at preventing errors from happening. H = 382
N = 104,838
68% 10.71% 8% 56% 63% 69% 75% 79% 94%
6. Feedback and Communication About Error                    
C1 1. We are given feedback about changes put into place based on event reports. H = 381
N = 100,884
52% 10.41% 20% 39% 45% 52% 59% 63% 87%
C3 2. We are informed about errors that happen in this unit. H = 381
N = 101,553
64% 10.73% 21% 53% 59% 63% 71% 77% 100%
C5 3. In this unit, we discuss ways to prevent errors from happening again. H = 379
N = 102,175
69% 10.59% 13% 58% 64% 70% 75% 81% 100%
7. Communication Openness                    
C2 1. Staff will freely speak up if they see something that may negatively affect patient care. H = 382
N = 103,775
75% 9.67% 12% 67% 71% 76% 80% 84% 100%
C4 2. Staff feel free to question the decisions or actions of those with more authority. H = 380
N = 104,265
46% 9.12% 13% 35% 41% 46% 51% 57% 94%
C6
R
3. Staff are afraid to ask questions when something does not seem right. H = 380
N = 104,578
62% 9.49% 19% 52% 57% 62% 67% 72% 100%
8. Frequency of Events Reported                    
D1 1. When a mistake is made, but is caught and corrected before affecting the patient, how often is this reported? H = 381
N = 93,071
50% 10.07% 18% 38% 44% 50% 57% 62% 82%
D2 2. When a mistake is made, but has no potential to harm the patient, how often is this reported? H = 381
N = 92,613
54% 9.78% 20% 43% 48% 54% 60% 66% 80%
D3 3. When a mistake is made that could harm the patient, but does not, how often is this reported? H = 381
N = 92,222
72% 9.45% 28% 63% 68% 73% 78% 83% 100%
9. Teamwork Across Units                    
F2
R
1. Hospital units do not coordinate well with each other. H = 381
N = 99,555
44% 12.74% 5% 29% 35% 43% 52% 61% 91%
F4 2. There is good cooperation among hospital units that need to work together. H = 381
N = 98,806
58% 12.76% 20% 42% 49% 57% 67% 74% 94%
F6
R
3. It is often unpleasant to work with staff from other hospital units. H = 381
N = 97,547
58% 10.70% 10% 46% 51% 57% 65% 71% 91%
F10 4. Hospital units work well together to provide the best care for patients. H = 381
N = 98,003
67% 12.67% 15% 52% 58% 67% 75% 82% 97%
10. Staffing                    
A2 1. We have enough staff to handle the workload. H = 380
N = 104,847
54% 13.95% 21% 37% 44% 53% 63% 74% 95%
A5
R
2. Staff in this unit work longer hours than is best for patient care.   H = 380
N = 100,634
52% 10.47% 22% 40% 46% 52% 58% 65% 87%
A7
R
3. We use more agency/temporary staff than is best for patient care.     H = 380
N = 97,738
64% 13.45% 4% 48% 57% 65% 73% 80% 100%
A14
R
4. We work in "crisis mode" trying to do too much, too quickly. H = 380
N = 101,759
48% 12.02% 18% 34% 39% 48% 57% 65% 91%
11. Handoffs & Transitions                    
F3
R
1. Things "fall between the cracks" when transferring patients from one unit to another. H = 382
N = 97,066
42% 14.09% 14% 25% 31% 40% 50% 61% 88%
F5
R
2. Important patient care information is often lost during shift changes. H = 382
N = 96,148
49% 11.47% 19% 36% 42% 48% 56% 64% 82%
F7
R
3. Problems often occur in the exchange of information across hospital units. H = 382
N = 97,796
42% 11.69% 11% 28% 33% 40% 48% 58% 84%
F11
R
4. Shift changes are problematic for patients in this hospital. H = 382
N = 95,725
46% 13.31% 18% 30% 36% 45% 54% 64% 94%
12. Nonpunitive Response to Error                    
A8
R
1. Staff feel like their mistakes are held against them. H = 381
N = 103,763
50% 10.00% 18% 38% 44% 50% 57% 63% 84%
A12
R
2. When an event is reported, it feels like the person is being written up, not the problem. H = 381
N = 101,788
43% 9.45% 12% 33% 37% 43% 49% 56% 75%
A16
R
3. Staff worry that mistakes they make are kept in their personnel file. H = 381
N = 101,976
35% 9.42% 12% 24% 28% 33% 41% 48% 67%

Note: The item's survey location is shown to the left. An "R" indicates a negatively worded item, where the percent positive response is based on those who responded "Strongly disagree" or "Disagree," or "Never" or "Rarely" (depending on the response category used for the item).

Key: H = hospitals; N = respondents.

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