Clinical Report: A Comprehensive Qualitative Approach for Evaluating Patient Safety Incidents

Overview

This report presents a qualitative, multi-framework methodology for analyzing health information technology (HIT)-related patient safety incidents. The approach integrates various data sources to systematically identify and characterize incidents, ultimately supporting the development of preventive strategies.

Background

The integration of health information technology (HIT) into healthcare systems has introduced new risks to patient safety, often emerging only after systems are in routine use. Traditional evaluation methods may fail to capture the complexities of these incidents, necessitating a more robust analytical framework. Understanding these risks is crucial for improving patient safety and healthcare quality.

Data Highlights

No numerical or trial data available in the source material.

Key Findings

• The proposed methodology combines multiple data sources, including incident reports and interviews, for comprehensive analysis.
• It employs both deductive and inductive approaches to capture the complexity of HIT-related incidents.
• The framework identifies sociotechnical mechanisms and contributing factors that traditional methods may overlook.
• It supports the analysis of low-frequency, high-impact events and system-level failures.
• Findings are translated into context-sensitive preventive and corrective strategies.

Clinical Implications

The multi-framework methodology enhances the understanding of how digital systems can fail in practice, providing a structured approach for safety analysts and clinicians. This framework can inform the development of strategies to mitigate risks associated with HIT.

Conclusion

This qualitative methodology offers a transferable approach for learning from HIT-related patient safety incidents, contributing to the improvement of digital healthcare safety and resilience.

Related Resources & Content

1. Frontiers in Digital Health, 2026 -- Why digital health fails silently: a sociotechnical theory of health information technology–related risk
2. Frontiers in Digital Health, 2026 -- Why health information technology safety problems remain invisible
3. The ASCO Post, 2011 -- Improving Quality and Safety with Health Information Technology
4. DIGITAL HEALTH, 2021 -- Examining the relationship between digital hospital level and patient safety culture: A study on healthcare workers
5. SAFER Guides - ONC - Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
6. Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of electronic health interventions to reduce medication errors | npj Digital Medicine, 2025
7. Patient Safety Risks from AI Scribes: Signals from End-User Feedback
8. SAFER Guides - ONC - Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
9. Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of electronic health interventions to reduce medication errors | npj Digital Medicine
10. Patient Safety Risks from AI Scribes: Signals from End-User Feedback