Patient Safety in Nurse Education

Patient safety is now a recognised field in contemporary healthcare systems. Since the early 1990s, the idea that healthcare is not always safe and that patients are exposed to high levels of risk in hospitals and other healthcare settings is an acknowledged reality. Nurses are recognised as key professionals in the advancement of patient safety. They identify more near misses and adverse events than any other professional group in healthcare, and are often seen as the defenders of patient safety. However, a global shortage of nurses has resulted in compromises in nursing care delivery processes across many countries. One manifestation of this is the phenomenon of missed or rationed nursing care, often resulting in less favourable patient outcomes, including adverse events and increased mortality.