Improving staff perception of a safety climate with crew resource management training.

PubMed

Kuy, SreyRam; Romero, Ramon A L

2017-06-01

Communication failure is one of the top root causes in patient safety adverse events. Crew resource management (CRM) is a team building communication process intended to improve patient safety by improving team dynamics. First, to describe implementation of CRM in a Veterans Affair (VA) surgical service. Second, to assess whether staff CRM training is related to improvement in staff perception of a safety climate. Mandatory CRM training was implemented for all surgical service staff at a VA Hospital at 0 and 12 mo. Safety climate questionnaires were completed by operating room staff at a baseline, 6 and 12 mo after the initial CRM training. Participants reported improvement on all 27 points on the safety climate questionnaire at 6 mo compared with the baseline. At 12 mo, there was sustained improvement in 23 of the 27 areas. This is the first published report about the effect of CRM training on staff perception of a safety climate in a VA surgical service. We demonstrate that CRM training can be successfully implemented widespread in a surgical program. Overall, there was improvement in 100% of areas assessed on the safety climate questionnaire at 6 mo after CRM training. By 1 y, this improvement was sustained in 23 of 27 areas, with the areas of greatest improvement being the performance of briefings, collaboration between nurses and doctors, valuing nursing input, knowledge about patient safety, and institutional promotion of a patient safety climate. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Measurement equivalence of patient safety climate in Chinese hospitals: can we compare across physicians and nurses?

PubMed

Zhu, Junya

2018-06-11

Self-report instruments have been widely used to better understand variations in patient safety climate between physicians and nurses. Research is needed to determine whether differences in patient safety climate reflect true differences in the underlying concepts. This is known as measurement equivalence, which is a prerequisite for meaningful group comparisons. This study aims to examine the degree of measurement equivalence of the responses to a patient safety climate survey of Chinese hospitals and to demonstrate how the measurement equivalence method can be applied to self-report climate surveys for patient safety research. Using data from the Chinese Hospital Survey of Patient Safety Climate from six Chinese hospitals in 2011, we constructed two groups: physicians and nurses (346 per group). We used multiple-group confirmatory factor analyses to examine progressively more stringent restrictions for measurement equivalence. We identified weak factorial equivalence across the two groups. Strong factorial equivalence was found for Organizational Learning, Unit Management Support for Safety, Adequacy of Safety Arrangements, Institutional Commitment to Safety, Error Reporting and Teamwork. Strong factorial equivalence, however, was not found for Safety System, Communication and Peer Support and Staffing. Nevertheless, further analyses suggested that nonequivalence did not meaningfully affect the conclusions regarding physician-nurse differences in patient safety climate. Our results provide evidence of at least partial equivalence of the survey responses between nurses and physicians, supporting mean comparisons of its constructs between the two groups. The measurement equivalence approach is essential to ensure that conclusions about group differences are valid.

A relational leadership perspective on unit-level safety climate.

PubMed

Thompson, Debra N; Hoffman, Leslie A; Sereika, Susan M; Lorenz, Holly L; Wolf, Gail A; Burns, Helen K; Minnier, Tamra E; Ramanujam, Rangaraj

2011-11-01

This study compared nursing staff perceptions of safety climate in clinical units characterized by high and low ratings of leader-member exchange (LMX) and explored characteristics that might account for differences. Frontline nursing leaders' actions are critical to ensure patient safety. Specific leadership behaviors to achieve this goal are underexamined. The LMX perspective has shown promise in nonhealthcare settings as a means to explain safety climate perceptions. Cross-sectional survey of staff (n = 711) and unit directors from 34 inpatient units in an academic medical center was conducted. Significant differences were found between high and low LMX scoring units on supervisor safety expectations, organizational learning-continuous improvement, total communication, feedback and communication about errors, and nonpunitive response to errors. The LMX perspective can be used to identify differences in perceptions of safety climate among nursing staff. Future studies are needed to identify strategies to improve staff safety attitudes and behaviors. Copyright © 2011 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Patient safety culture in Norwegian primary care: a study in out-of-hours casualty clinics and GP practices.

PubMed

Bondevik, Gunnar Tschudi; Hofoss, Dag; Hansen, Elisabeth Holm; Deilkås, Ellen Catharina Tveter

2014-09-01

This study aimed to investigate patient safety attitudes amongst health care providers in Norwegian primary care by using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire, in both out-of-hours (OOH) casualty clinics and GP practices. The questionnaire identifies five major patient safety factors: Teamwork climate, Safety climate, Job satisfaction, Perceptions of management, and Working conditions. Cross-sectional study. Statistical analysis included multiple linear regression and independent samples t-tests. Seven OOH casualty clinics and 17 GP practices in Norway. In October and November 2012, 510 primary health care providers working in OOH casualty clinics and GP practices (316 doctors and 194 nurses) were invited to participate anonymously. To study whether patterns in patient safety attitudes were related to professional background, gender, age, and clinical setting. The overall response rate was 52%; 72% of the nurses and 39% of the doctors answered the questionnaire. In the OOH clinics, nurses scored significantly higher than doctors on Safety climate and Job satisfaction. Older health care providers scored significantly higher than younger on Safety climate and Working conditions. In GP practices, male health professionals scored significantly higher than female on Teamwork climate, Safety climate, Perceptions of management and Working conditions. Health care providers in GP practices had significant higher mean scores on the factors Safety climate and Working conditions, compared with those working in the OOH clinics. Our study showed that nurses scored higher than doctors, older health professionals scored higher than younger, male GPs scored higher than female GPs, and health professionals in GP practices scored higher than those in OOH clinics - on several patient safety factors.

Association of nurse work environment and safety climate on patient mortality: A cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Olds, Danielle M; Aiken, Linda H; Cimiotti, Jeannie P; Lake, Eileen T

2017-09-01

There are two largely distinct research literatures on the association of the nurse work environment and the safety climate on patient outcomes. To determine whether hospital safety climate and work environment make comparable or distinct contributions to patient mortality. Cross-sectional secondary analysis of linked datasets of Registered Nurse survey responses, adult acute care discharge records, and hospital characteristics. Acute care hospitals in California, Florida, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The sample included 600 hospitals linked to 27,009 nurse survey respondents and 852,974 surgical patients. Nurse survey data included assessments of the nurse work environment and hospital safety climate. The outcome of interest was in-hospital mortality. Data analyses included descriptive statistics and multivariate random intercept logistic regression. In a fully adjusted model, a one standard deviation increase in work environment score was associated with an 8.1% decrease in the odds of mortality (OR 0.919, p<0.001). A one-standard deviation increase in safety climate score was similarly associated with a 7.7% decrease in the odds of mortality (OR 0.923, p<0.001). However, when work environment and safety climate were modeled together, the effect of the work environment remained significant, while safety climate became a non-significant predictor of mortality odds (OR 0.940, p=0.035 vs. OR 0.971, p=0.316). We found that safety climate perception is not predictive of patient mortality beyond the effect of the nurse work environment. To advance hospital safety and quality and improve patient outcomes, organizational interventions should be directed toward improving nurse work environments. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Roles of safety climate and shift work on perceived injury risk: a multi-level analysis.

PubMed

Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Chen, Jiu-Chiuan; DeArmond, Sarah; Cigularov, Konstantin; Chen, Peter Y

2007-11-01

This study evaluated the relationship between employees' work shift (i.e., day shift versus night shift) and perceptions of injury risk, and how the relationship is affected by company level safety climate and injury frequency. The results showed that night shift workers perceived a higher level of injury risk compared to day shift workers. Both company level safety climate and injury frequency played critical roles in predicting individual perceived work injury risk. Perception of injury risk of night shift workers was significantly lower when they perceived high-level rather than low-level safety climate. However, this pattern was not noticeable for day shift workers. These findings highlighted the importance of considering company level factors when attempting to understand the differences between day shift and night shift work on an individual's perception of injury risk.

Worksite health and safety climate: scale development and effects of a health promotion intervention.

PubMed

Basen-Engquist, K; Hudmon, K S; Tripp, M; Chamberlain, R

1998-01-01

Environmental influences on health and health behavior have an important place in research on worksite health promotion. We tested the validity and internal consistency of a new measure of organizational health and safety climate that was used in a large randomized trial of a worksite cancer prevention program (the Working Well Trial). The resulting scales then were applied to assess intervention effects. This study uses data from a subset of 40 worksites in the Working Well Trial. Employees at 20 natural gas pipeline worksite and 20 rural electrical cooperatives completed a cross-sectional questionnaire at baseline and 3-year follow-up. A factor analysis of this self-report instrument produced a two-factor solution. The resulting health and safety climate scales had good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.74 and 0.82, respectively) and concurrent validity. The health climate scale was correlated more highly with organizational measures that were indicative of a supportive health climate than those indicating supportive safety climate, while the reverse was true of the safety climate scale. Changes in health climate were associated with the number of smoking and smokeless tobacco programs offered at the worksites at the time of the 3-year follow-up (r = 0.46 and 0.42, respectively). The scales were not correlated with most employee health behaviors. The health climate scores increased at intervention worksites, compared with scores at control worksites (F[1,36] = 7.57, P = 0.009). The health and safety climate scales developed for this study provide useful instruments for measuring organizational change related to worksite health promotion activities. The Working Well Intervention resulted in a significant improvement in worksite health climate.

Organizational injury rate underreporting: the moderating effect of organizational safety climate.

PubMed

Probst, Tahira M; Brubaker, Ty L; Barsotti, Anthony

2008-09-01

The goals of this study were (a) to assess the extent to which construction industry workplace injuries and illness are underreported, and (b) to determine whether safety climate predicts the extent of such underreporting. Data from 1,390 employees of 38 companies contracted to work at a large construction site in the northwestern United States were collected to assess the safety climate of the companies. Data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) logs kept by the contractors allowed for calculation of each company's OSHA recordable injury rate (i.e., the reported injury rate), whereas medical claims data from an Owner-Controlled Insurance Program provided the actual experienced rate of injuries for those same companies. While the annual injury rate reported to OSHA was 3.11 injuries per 100 workers, the rate of eligible injuries that were not reported to OSHA was 10.90 injuries per 100 employees. Further, organizations with a poor safety climate had significantly higher rates of underreporting (81% of eligible injuries unreported) compared with organizations with a positive safety climate (47% of eligible injuries unreported). Implications for organizations and the accuracy of the Bureau of Labor Statistics's national occupational injury and illness surveillance system are discussed.

A closer look at associations between hospital leadership walkrounds and patient safety climate and risk reduction: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Schwendimann, René; Milne, Judy; Frush, Karen; Ausserhofer, Dietmar; Frankel, Allan; Sexton, J Bryan

2013-01-01

Leadership walkrounds (WRs) are widely used in health care organizations to improve patient safety. This retrospective, cross-sectional study evaluated the association between WRs and caregiver assessments of patient safety climate and patient safety risk reduction across 49 hospitals in a nonprofit health care system. Linear regression analyses using units' participation in WRs were conducted. Survey results from 706 hospital units revealed that units with ≥ 60% of caregivers reporting exposure to at least 1 WR had a significantly higher safety climate, greater patient safety risk reduction, and a higher proportion of feedback on actions taken as a result of WRs compared with those units with <60% of caregivers reporting exposure to WRs. WR participation at the unit level reflects a frequency effect as a function of units with none/low, medium, and high leadership WR exposure.

Validation of a pre-existing safety climate scale for the Turkish furniture manufacturing industry.

PubMed

Akyuz, Kadri Cemil; Yildirim, Ibrahim; Gungor, Celal

2018-03-22

Understanding the safety climate level is essential to implement a proactive safety program. The objective of this study is to explore the possibility of having a safety climate scale for the Turkish furniture manufacturing industry since there has not been any scale available. The questionnaire recruited 783 subjects. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) tested a pre-existing safety scale's fit to the industry. The CFA indicated that the structures of the model present a non-satisfactory fit with the data (χ 2  = 2033.4, df = 314, p ≤ 0.001; root mean square error of approximation = 0.08, normed fit index = 0.65, Tucker-Lewis index = 0.65, comparative fit index = 0.69, parsimony goodness-of-fit index = 0.68). The results suggest that a new scale should be developed and validated to measure the safety climate level in the Turkish furniture manufacturing industry. Due to the hierarchical structure of organizations, future studies should consider a multilevel approach in their exploratory factor analyses while developing a new scale.

Psychosocial influences on safety climate: evidence from community pharmacies.

PubMed

Phipps, Denham L; Ashcroft, Darren M

2011-12-01

To examine the relationship between psychosocial job characteristics and safety climate. Cross-sectional survey. Community pharmacies in Great Britain. Participants A random sample of community pharmacists registered in Great Britain (n = 860). Survey instruments Effort-reward imbalance (ERI) indicator and Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ). Main outcome measures Pharmacy Safety Climate Questionnaire (PSCQ). The profile of scores from the ERI indicated a relatively high risk of adverse psychological effects. The profile of scores from the JCQ indicated both high demand on pharmacists and a high level of psychological and social resources to meet these demands. Path analysis confirmed a model in which the ERI and JCQ measures, as well as the type of pharmacy and pharmacist role, predicted responses to the PSCQ (χ(2)(36) = 111.38, p < 0.001; Tucker-Lewis index = 0.96; comparative fit index = 0.98; root mean square error of approximation=0.05). Two general factors (effort vs reward and control vs demand) accounted for the effect of job characteristics on safety climate ratings; each had differential effects on the PSCQ scales. The safety climate in community pharmacies is influenced by perceptions of job characteristics, such as the level of job demands and the resources available to meet these demands. Hence, any efforts to improve safety should take into consideration the effect of the psychosocial work environment on safety climate. In addition, there is a need to address the presence of work-related stressors, which have the potential to cause direct or indirect harm to staff and service users. The findings of the current study provide a basis for future research to improve the safety climate and well-being, both in the pharmacy profession and in other healthcare settings.

Correlation between safety climate and contractor safety assessment programs in construction

PubMed Central

Sparer, EH1; Murphy, LA; Taylor, KM; Dennerlein, Jt

2015-01-01

Background Contractor safety assessment programs (CSAPs) measure safety performance by integrating multiple data sources together; however, the relationship between these measures of safety performance and safety climate within the construction industry is unknown. Methods 401 construction workers employed by 68 companies on 26 sites and 11 safety managers employed by 11 companies completed brief surveys containing a nine-item safety climate scale developed for the construction industry. CSAP scores from ConstructSecure, Inc., an online CSAP database, classified these 68 companies as high or low scorers, with the median score of the sample population as the threshold. Spearman rank correlations evaluated the association between the CSAP score and the safety climate score at the individual level, as well as with various grouping methodologies. In addition, Spearman correlations evaluated the comparison between manager-assessed safety climate and worker-assessed safety climate. Results There were no statistically significant differences between safety climate scores reported by workers in the high and low CSAP groups. There were, at best, weak correlations between workers’ safety climate scores and the company CSAP scores, with marginal statistical significance with two groupings of the data. There were also no significant differences between the manager-assessed safety climate and the worker-assessed safety climate scores. Conclusions A CSAP safety performance score does not appear to capture safety climate, as measured in this study. The nature of safety climate in construction is complex, which may be reflective of the challenges in measuring safety climate within this industry. PMID:24038403

Safety climate and its association with office type and team involvement in primary care.

PubMed

Gehring, Katrin; Schwappach, David L B; Battaglia, Markus; Buff, Roman; Huber, Felix; Sauter, Peter; Wieser, Markus

2013-09-01

To assess differences in safety climate perceptions between occupational groups and types of office organization in primary care. Primary care physicians and nurses working in outpatient offices were surveyed about safety climate. Explorative factor analysis was performed to determine the factorial structure. Differences in mean climate scores between staff groups and types of office were tested. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine predictors for a 'favorable' safety climate. 630 individuals returned the survey (response rate, 50%). Differences between occupational groups were observed in the means of the 'team-based error prevention'-scale (physician 4.0 vs. nurse 3.8, P < 0.001). Medical centers scored higher compared with single-handed offices and joint practices on the 'team-based error prevention'-scale (4.3 vs. 3.8 vs. 3.9, P < 0.001) but less favorable on the 'rules and risks'-scale (3.5 vs. 3.9 vs. 3.7, P < 0.001). Characteristics on the individual and office level predicted favorable 'team-based error prevention'-scores. Physicians (OR = 0.4, P = 0.01) and less experienced staff (OR 0.52, P = 0.04) were less likely to provide favorable scores. Individuals working at medical centers were more likely to provide positive scores compared with single-handed offices (OR 3.33, P = 0.001). The largest positive effect was associated with at least monthly team meetings (OR 6.2, P < 0.001) and participation in quality circles (OR 4.49, P < 0.001). Results indicate that frequent quality circle participation and team meetings involving all team members are effective ways to strengthen safety climate in terms of team-based strategies and activities in error prevention.

The Relationship Between the Learning and Patient Safety Climates of Clinical Departments and Residents' Patient Safety Behaviors.

PubMed

Silkens, Milou E W M; Arah, Onyebuchi A; Wagner, Cordula; Scherpbier, Albert J J A; Heineman, Maas Jan; Lombarts, Kiki M J M H

2018-05-15

Improving residents' patient safety behavior should be a priority in graduate medical education to ensure the safety of current and future patients. Supportive learning and patient safety climates may foster this behavior. This study examined the extent to which residents' self-reported patient safety behavior can be explained by the learning climate and patient safety climate of their clinical departments. The authors collected learning climate data from clinical departments in the Netherlands that used the web-based Dutch Residency Educational Climate Test between September 2015 and October 2016. They also gathered data on those departments' patient safety climate and on residents' self-reported patient safety behavior. They used generalized linear mixed models and multivariate general linear models to test for associations in the data. In total, 1,006 residents evaluated 143 departments in 31 teaching hospitals. Departments' patient safety climate was associated with residents' overall self-reported patient safety behavior (regression coefficient (b) = 0.33; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.14 - 0.52). Departments' learning climate was not associated with residents' patient safety behavior (b = 0.01; 95% CI = -0.17 - 0.19), although it was with their patient safety climate (b = 0.73; 95% CI = 0.69 - 0.77). Departments should focus on establishing a supportive patient safety climate to improve residents' patient safety behavior. Building a supportive learning climate might help to improve the patient safety climate and, in turn, residents' patient safety behavior.

Railway safety climate: a study on organizational development.

PubMed

Cheng, Yung-Hsiang

2017-09-07

The safety climate of an organization is considered a leading indicator of potential risk for railway organizations. This study adopts the perceptual measurement-individual attribute approach to investigate the safety climate of a railway organization. The railway safety climate attributes are evaluated from the perspective of railway system staff. We identify four safety climate dimensions from exploratory factor analysis, namely safety communication, safety training, safety management and subjectively evaluated safety performance. Analytical results indicate that the safety climate differs at vertical and horizontal organizational levels. This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the multilevel safety climate in a railway organization, presents possible causes of the differences under various cultural contexts and differentiates between safety climate scales for diverse workgroups within the railway organization. This information can be used to improve the safety sustainability of railway organizations and to conduct safety supervisions for the government.

Correlation between safety climate and contractor safety assessment programs in construction.

PubMed

Sparer, Emily H; Murphy, Lauren A; Taylor, Kathryn M; Dennerlein, Jack T

2013-12-01

Contractor safety assessment programs (CSAPs) measure safety performance by integrating multiple data sources together; however, the relationship between these measures of safety performance and safety climate within the construction industry is unknown. Four hundred and one construction workers employed by 68 companies on 26 sites and 11 safety managers employed by 11 companies completed brief surveys containing a nine-item safety climate scale developed for the construction industry. CSAP scores from ConstructSecure, Inc., an online CSAP database, classified these 68 companies as high or low scorers, with the median score of the sample population as the threshold. Spearman rank correlations evaluated the association between the CSAP score and the safety climate score at the individual level, as well as with various grouping methodologies. In addition, Spearman correlations evaluated the comparison between manager-assessed safety climate and worker-assessed safety climate. There were no statistically significant differences between safety climate scores reported by workers in the high and low CSAP groups. There were, at best, weak correlations between workers' safety climate scores and the company CSAP scores, with marginal statistical significance with two groupings of the data. There were also no significant differences between the manager-assessed safety climate and the worker-assessed safety climate scores. A CSAP safety performance score does not appear to capture safety climate, as measured in this study. The nature of safety climate in construction is complex, which may be reflective of the challenges in measuring safety climate within this industry. Am. J. Ind. Med. 56:1463-1472, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Evaluation of safety climate and employee injury rates in healthcare.

PubMed

Cook, Jacqueline M; Slade, Martin D; Cantley, Linda F; Sakr, Carine J

2016-09-01

Safety climates that support safety-related behaviour are associated with fewer work-related injuries, and prior research in industry suggests that safety knowledge and motivation are strongly related to safety performance behaviours; this relationship is not well studied in healthcare settings. We performed analyses of survey results from a Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Safety Barometer employee perception survey, conducted among VHA employees in 2012. The employee perception survey assessed 6 safety programme categories, including management participation, supervisor participation, employee participation, safety support activities, safety support climate and organisational climate. We examined the relationship between safety climate from the survey results on VHA employee injury and illness rates. Among VHA facilities in the VA New England Healthcare System, work-related injury rate was significantly and inversely related to overall employee perception of safety climate, and all 6 safety programme categories, including employee perception of employee participation, management participation, organisational climate, supervisor participation, safety support activities and safety support climate. Positive employee perceptions of safety climate in VHA facilities are associated with lower work-related injury and illness rates. Employee perception of employee participation, management participation, organisational climate, supervisor participation, safety support activities and safety support climate were all associated with lower work-related injury rates. Future implications include fostering a robust safety climate for patients and healthcare workers to reduce healthcare worker injuries. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Disentangling the roles of safety climate and safety culture: Multi-level effects on the relationship between supervisor enforcement and safety compliance.

PubMed

Petitta, Laura; Probst, Tahira M; Barbaranelli, Claudio; Ghezzi, Valerio

2017-02-01

Despite increasing attention to contextual effects on the relationship between supervisor enforcement and employee safety compliance, no study has yet explored the conjoint influence exerted simultaneously by organizational safety climate and safety culture. The present study seeks to address this literature shortcoming. We first begin by briefly discussing the theoretical distinctions between safety climate and culture and the rationale for examining these together. Next, using survey data collected from 1342 employees in 32 Italian organizations, we found that employee-level supervisor enforcement, organizational-level safety climate, and autocratic, bureaucratic, and technocratic safety culture dimensions all predicted individual-level safety compliance behaviors. However, the cross-level moderating effect of safety climate was bounded by certain safety culture dimensions, such that safety climate moderated the supervisor enforcement-compliance relationship only under the clan-patronage culture dimension. Additionally, the autocratic and bureaucratic culture dimensions attenuated the relationship between supervisor enforcement and compliance. Finally, when testing the effects of technocratic safety culture and cooperative safety culture, neither safety culture nor climate moderated the relationship between supervisor enforcement and safety compliance. The results suggest a complex relationship between organizational safety culture and safety climate, indicating that organizations with particular safety cultures may be more likely to develop more (or less) positive safety climates. Moreover, employee safety compliance is a function of supervisor safety leadership, as well as the safety climate and safety culture dimensions prevalent within the organization. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Relationship of hospital organizational culture to patient safety climate in the Veterans Health Administration.

PubMed

Hartmann, Christine W; Meterko, Mark; Rosen, Amy K; Shibei Zhao; Shokeen, Priti; Singer, Sara; Gaba, David M

2009-06-01

Improving safety climate could enhance patient safety, yet little evidence exists regarding the relationship between hospital characteristics and safety climate. This study assessed the relationship between hospitals' organizational culture and safety climate in Veterans Health Administration (VA) hospitals nationally. Data were collected from a sample of employees in a stratified random sample of 30 VA hospitals over a 6-month period (response rate = 50%; n = 4,625). The Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations (PSCHO) and the Zammuto and Krakower surveys were used to measure safety climate and organizational culture, respectively. Higher levels of safety climate were significantly associated with higher levels of group and entrepreneurial cultures, while lower levels of safety climate were associated with higher levels of hierarchical culture. Hospitals could use these results to design specific interventions aimed at improving safety climate.

Concept analysis of safety climate in healthcare providers.

PubMed

Lin, Ying-Siou; Lin, Yen-Chun; Lou, Meei-Fang

2017-06-01

To report an analysis of the concept of safety climate in healthcare providers. Compliance with safe work practices is essential to patient safety and care outcomes. Analysing the concept of safety climate from the perspective of healthcare providers could improve understanding of the correlations between safety climate and healthcare provider compliance with safe work practices, thus enhancing quality of patient care. Concept analysis. The electronic databases of CINAHL, MEDLINE, PubMed and Web of Science were searched for literature published between 1995-2015. Searches used the keywords 'safety climate' or 'safety culture' with 'hospital' or 'healthcare'. The concept analysis method of Walker and Avant analysed safety climate from the perspective of healthcare providers. Three attributes defined how healthcare providers define safety climate: (1) creation of safe working environment by senior management in healthcare organisations; (2) shared perception of healthcare providers about safety of their work environment; and (3) the effective dissemination of safety information. Antecedents included the characteristics of healthcare providers and healthcare organisations as a whole, and the types of work in which they are engaged. Consequences consisted of safety performance and safety outcomes. Most studies developed and assessed the survey tools of safety climate or safety culture, with a minority consisting of interventional measures for improving safety climate. More prospective studies are needed to create interventional measures for improving safety climate of healthcare providers. This study is provided as a reference for use in developing multidimensional safety climate assessment tools and interventional measures. The values healthcare teams emphasise with regard to safety can serve to improve safety performance. Having an understanding of the concept of and interventional measures for safety climate allows healthcare providers to ensure the safety of their operations and their patients. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Safety climate and safety behaviors in the construction industry: The importance of co-workers commitment to safety.

PubMed

Schwatka, Natalie V; Rosecrance, John C

2016-06-16

There is growing empirical evidence that as safety climate improves work site safety practice improve. Safety climate is often measured by asking workers about their perceptions of management commitment to safety. However, it is less common to include perceptions of their co-workers commitment to safety. While the involvement of management in safety is essential, working with co-workers who value and prioritize safety may be just as important. To evaluate a concept of safety climate that focuses on top management, supervisors and co-workers commitment to safety, which is relatively new and untested in the United States construction industry. Survey data was collected from a cohort of 300 unionized construction workers in the United States. The significance of direct and indirect (mediation) effects among safety climate and safety behavior factors were evaluated via structural equation modeling. Results indicated that safety climate was associated with safety behaviors on the job. More specifically, perceptions of co-workers commitment to safety was a mediator between both management commitment to safety climate factors and safety behaviors. These results support workplace health and safety interventions that build and sustain safety climate and a commitment to safety amongst work teams.

The influence of authentic leadership on safety climate in nursing.

PubMed

Dirik, Hasan Fehmi; Seren Intepeler, Seyda

2017-07-01

This study analysed nurses' perceptions of authentic leadership and safety climate and examined the contribution of authentic leadership to the safety climate. It has been suggested and emphasised that authentic leadership should be used as a guidance to ensure quality care and the safety of patients and health-care personnel. This predictive study was conducted with 350 nurses in three Turkish hospitals. The data were collected using the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire and the Safety Climate Survey and analysed using hierarchical regression analysis. The mean authentic leadership perception and the safety climate scores of the nurses were 2.92 and 3.50, respectively. The percentage of problematic responses was found to be less than 10% for only four safety climate items. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that authentic leadership significantly predicted the safety climate. Procedural and political improvements are required in terms of the safety climate in institutions, where the study was conducted, and authentic leadership increases positive perceptions of safety climate. Exhibiting the characteristics of authentic leadership, or improving them and reflecting them on to personnel can enhance the safety climate. Planning information sharing meetings to raise the personnel's awareness of safety climate and systemic improvements can contribute to creating safe care climates. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Improving safety climate through a communication and recognition program for construction: a mixed-methods study

PubMed Central

Sparer, Emily H; Catalano, Paul J; Herrick, Robert F; Dennerlein, Jack T

2016-01-01

Objectives This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a safety communication and recognition program (B-SAFE), designed to encourage improvement of physical working conditions and hazard reduction in construction. Methods A matched pair cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted on eight worksites (four received the B-SAFE intervention, four served as control sites) for approximately five months per site. Pre- and post-exposure worker surveys were collected at all sites (N=615, pre-exposure response rate of 74%, post-exposure response rate of 88%). Multi-level mixed-effect regression models evaluated the effect of B-SAFE on safety climate as assessed from surveys. Focus groups (N=6–8 workers/site) were conducted following data collection. Transcripts were coded and analyzed for thematic content using Atlas.ti (version 6). Results The mean safety climate score at intervention sites, as measured on a 0–50 point scale, increased 0.5 points (1%) between pre- and post-B-SAFE exposure, compared to control sites that decreased 0.8 points (1.6%). The intervention effect size was 1.64 (3.28%) (P-value=0.01) when adjusted for month the worker started on-site, total length of time on-site, as well as individual characteristics (trade, title, age, and race/ethnicity). At intervention sites, workers noted increased levels of safety awareness, communication, and teamwork compared to control sites. Conclusions B-SAFE led to many positive changes, including an improvement in safety climate, awareness, teambuilding, and communication. B-SAFE was a simple intervention that engaged workers through effective communication infrastructures and had a significant, positive effect on worksite safety. PMID:27158914

Patient safety climate and worker safety behaviours in acute hospitals in Scotland.

PubMed

Agnew, Cakil; Flin, Rhona; Mearns, Kathryn

2013-06-01

To obtain a measure of hospital safety climate from a sample of National Health Service (NHS) acute hospitals in Scotland and to test whether these scores were associated with worker safety behaviors, and patient and worker injuries. Data were from 1,866 NHS clinical staff in six Scottish acute hospitals. A Scottish Hospital Safety Questionnaire measured hospital safety climate (Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture), worker safety behaviors, and worker and patient injuries. The associations between the hospital safety climate scores and the outcome measures (safety behaviors, worker and patient injury rates) were examined. Hospital safety climate scores were significantly correlated with clinical workers' safety behavior and patient and worker injury measures, although the effect sizes were smaller for the latter. Regression analyses revealed that perceptions of staffing levels and managerial commitment were significant predictors for all the safety outcome measures. Both patient-specific and more generic safety climate items were found to have significant impacts on safety outcome measures. This study demonstrated the influences of different aspects of hospital safety climate on both patient and worker safety outcomes. Moreover, it has been shown that in a hospital setting, a safety climate supporting safer patient care would also help to ensure worker safety. The Scottish Hospital Safety Questionnaire has proved to be a usable method of measuring both hospital safety climate as well as patient and worker safety outcomes. Copyright © 2013 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safety climate practice in Korean manufacturing industry.

PubMed

Baek, Jong-Bae; Bae, Sejong; Ham, Byung-Ho; Singh, Karan P

2008-11-15

Safety climate survey was sent to 642 plants in 2003 to explore safety climate practices in the Korean manufacturing plants, especially in hazardous chemical treating plants. Out of 642 plants contacted 195 (30.4%) participated in the surveys. Data were collected by e-mail using SQL-server and mail. The main objective of this study was to explore safety climate practices (level of safety climate and the underlying problems). In addition, the variables that may influence the level of safety climate among managers and workers were explored. The questionnaires developed by health and safety executive (HSE) in the UK were modified to incorporate differences in Korean culture. Eleven important factors were summarized. Internal reliability of these factors was validated. Number of employees in the company varied from less than 30 employees (9.2%) to over 1000 employees (37.4%). Both managers and workers showed generally high level of safety climate awareness. The major underlying problems identified were inadequate health and safety procedures/rules, pressure for production, and rule breaking. The length of employment was a significant contributing factor to the level of safety climate. In this study, participants showed generally high level of safety climate, and length of employment affected the differences in the level of safety climate. Managers' commitment to comply safety rules, procedures, and effective safety education and training are recommended.

A structural equation modelling approach examining the pathways between safety climate, behaviour performance and workplace slipping

PubMed Central

Swedler, David I; Verma, Santosh K; Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Lombardi, David A; Chang, Wen-Ruey; Brennan, Melayne; Courtney, Theodore K

2015-01-01

Objective Safety climate has previously been associated with increasing safe workplace behaviours and decreasing occupational injuries. This study seeks to understand the structural relationship between employees’ perceptions of safety climate, performing a safety behaviour (ie, wearing slip-resistant shoes) and risk of slipping in the setting of limited-service restaurants. Methods At baseline, we surveyed 349 employees at 30 restaurants for their perceptions of their safety training and management commitment to safety as well as demographic data. Safety performance was identified as wearing slip-resistant shoes, as measured by direct observation by the study team. We then prospectively collected participants’ hours worked and number of slips weekly for the next 12 weeks. Using a confirmatory factor analysis, we modelled safety climate as a higher order factor composed of previously identified training and management commitment factors. Results The 349 study participants experienced 1075 slips during the 12-week follow-up. Confirmatory factor analysis supported modelling safety climate as a higher order factor composed of safety training and management commitment. In a structural equation model, safety climate indirectly affected prospective risk of slipping through safety performance, but no direct relationship between safety climate and slips was evident. Conclusions Results suggest that safety climate can reduce workplace slips through performance of a safety behaviour as well as suggesting a potential causal mechanism through which safety climate can reduce workplace injuries. Safety climate can be modelled as a higher order factor composed of safety training and management commitment. PMID:25710968

The relationship between patient safety climate and occupational safety climate in healthcare - A multi-level investigation.

PubMed

Pousette, Anders; Larsman, Pernilla; Eklöf, Mats; Törner, Marianne

2017-06-01

Patient safety climate/culture is attracting increasing research interest, but there is little research on its relation with organizational climates regarding other target domains. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between patient safety climate and occupational safety climate in healthcare. The climates were assessed using two questionnaires: Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture and Nordic Occupational Safety Climate Questionnaire. The final sample consisted of 1154 nurses, 886 assistant nurses, and 324 physicians, organized in 150 work units, within hospitals (117units), primary healthcare (5units) and elderly care (28units) in western Sweden, which represented 56% of the original sample contacted. Within each type of safety climate, two global dimensions were confirmed in a higher order factor analysis; one with an external focus relative the own unit, and one with an internal focus. Two methods were used to estimate the covariation between the global climate dimensions, in order to minimize the influence of bias from common method variance. First multilevel analysis was used for partitioning variances and covariances in a within unit part (individual level) and a between unit part (unit level). Second, a split sample technique was used to calculate unit level correlations based on aggregated observations from different respondents. Both methods showed associations similar in strength between the patient safety climate and the occupational safety climate domains. The results indicated that patient safety climate and occupational safety climate are strongly positively related at the unit level, and that the same organizational processes may be important for the development of both types of organizational climate. Safety improvement interventions should not be separated in different organizational processes, but be planned so that both patient safety and staff safety are considered concomitantly. Copyright © 2017 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safety climate and attitude as evaluation measures of organizational safety.

PubMed

Isla Díaz, R; Díaz Cabrera, D

1997-09-01

The main aim of this research is to develop a set of evaluation measures for safety attitudes and safety climate. Specifically it is intended: (a) to test the instruments; (b) to identify the essential dimensions of the safety climate in the airport ground handling companies; (c) to assess the quality of the differences in the safety climate for each company and its relation to the accident rate; (d) to analyse the relationship between attitudes and safety climate; and (e) to evaluate the influences of situational and personal factors on both safety climate and attitude. The study sample consisted of 166 subjects from three airport companies. Specifically, this research was centered on ground handling departments. The factor analysis of the safety climate instrument resulted in six factors which explained 69.8% of the total variance. We found significant differences in safety attitudes and climate in relation to type of enterprise.

Safety climate and mindful safety practices in the oil and gas industry.

PubMed

Dahl, Øyvind; Kongsvik, Trond

2018-02-01

The existence of a positive association between safety climate and the safety behavior of sharp-end workers in high-risk organizations is supported by a considerable body of research. Previous research has primarily analyzed two components of safety behavior, namely safety compliance and safety participation. The present study extends previous research by looking into the relationship between safety climate and another component of safety behavior, namely mindful safety practices. Mindful safety practices are defined as the ability to be aware of critical factors in the environment and to act appropriately when dangers arise. Regression analysis was used to examine whether mindful safety practices are, like compliance and participation, promoted by a positive safety climate, in a questionnaire-based study of 5712 sharp-end workers in the oil and gas industry. The analysis revealed that a positive safety climate promotes mindful safety practices. The regression model accounted for roughly 31% of the variance in mindful safety practices. The most important safety climate factor was safety leadership. The findings clearly demonstrate that mindful safety practices are highly context-dependent, hence, manageable and susceptible to change. In order to improve safety climate in a direction which is favorable for mindful safety practices, the results demonstrate that it is important to give the fundamental features of safety climate high priority and in particular that of safety leadership. Copyright © 2017 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An investigation of safety climate in OHSAS 18001-certified and non-certified organizations.

PubMed

Ghahramani, Abolfazl

2016-09-01

Many organizations worldwide have implemented Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001 in their premises because of the assumed positive effects of this standard on safety. Few studies have analyzed the effect of the safety climate in OHSAS 18001-certified organizations. This case-control study used a new safety climate questionnaire to evaluate three OHSAS 18001-certified and three non-certified manufacturing companies in Iran. Hierarchical regression indicated that the safety climate was influenced by OHSAS implementation and by safety training. Employees who received safety training had better perceptions of the safety climate and its dimensions than other respondents within the certified companies. This study found that the implementation of OHSAS 18001 does not guarantee improvement of the safety climate. This study also emphasizes the need for high-quality safety training for employees of the certified companies to improve the safety climate.

Work Safety Climate, Musculoskeletal Discomfort, Working While Injured, and Depression Among Migrant Farmworkers in North Carolina

PubMed Central

O’Hara, Heather; Grzywacz, Joseph G.; Isom, Scott; Chen, Haiying; Quandt, Sara A.

2012-01-01

Objectives. This analysis described Latino migrant farmworkers’ work safety climate and its association with musculoskeletal discomfort, working while injured or ill, and depressive symptoms. Methods. Data were from a cross-sectional survey of 300 farmworkers conducted in North Carolina in 2009. Generalized estimating equations models were used to investigate the association of work safety climate with health and safety outcomes. Results. Farmworkers perceived their work safety climate to be poor. About 40% had elevated musculoskeletal discomfort, 5.0% had worked at least 1 day while injured or ill, and 27.9% had elevated depressive symptoms. The odds of elevated musculoskeletal discomfort were 12% lower and the odds of working while injured or ill were 15% lower with each 1-unit increase in the work safety climate. Work safety climate was not associated with depressive symptoms. Conclusions. Work safety climate was important for agricultural workers. Poor work safety climate was associated with health outcomes (musculoskeletal discomfort) and safety (working while injured or ill). Interventions to improve work safety climate in agriculture are needed, with these interventions being directed to employers and workers. PMID:22401520

Work safety climate, musculoskeletal discomfort, working while injured, and depression among migrant farmworkers in North Carolina.

PubMed

Arcury, Thomas A; O'Hara, Heather; Grzywacz, Joseph G; Isom, Scott; Chen, Haiying; Quandt, Sara A

2012-05-01

This analysis described Latino migrant farmworkers' work safety climate and its association with musculoskeletal discomfort, working while injured or ill, and depressive symptoms. Data were from a cross-sectional survey of 300 farmworkers conducted in North Carolina in 2009. Generalized estimating equations models were used to investigate the association of work safety climate with health and safety outcomes. Farmworkers perceived their work safety climate to be poor. About 40% had elevated musculoskeletal discomfort, 5.0% had worked at least 1 day while injured or ill, and 27.9% had elevated depressive symptoms. The odds of elevated musculoskeletal discomfort were 12% lower and the odds of working while injured or ill were 15% lower with each 1-unit increase in the work safety climate. Work safety climate was not associated with depressive symptoms. Work safety climate was important for agricultural workers. Poor work safety climate was associated with health outcomes (musculoskeletal discomfort) and safety (working while injured or ill). Interventions to improve work safety climate in agriculture are needed, with these interventions being directed to employers and workers.

Influence of safety motivation and climate on safety behaviour and outcomes: evidence from the Saudi Arabian construction industry.

PubMed

Panuwatwanich, Kriengsak; Al-Haadir, Saeed; Stewart, Rodney A

2017-03-01

Over the last three decades, safety literature has focused on safety climate and its role in forecasting injuries and accidents. However, research findings regarding the relationships between safety climate and other key outcome constructs are somewhat inconsistent. Recent safety climate literature suggests that examining the role of safety motivation may help provide a better explanation of such relationships. The research presented in this article aimed to empirically analyse the relationships among safety motivation, safety climate, safety behaviour and safety outcomes within the context of the Saudi Arabian construction industry. A conceptual model was developed to examine the relationships among four main constructs: safety motivation, safety climate, safety behaviour and safety outcomes. Based on the survey data collected in Saudi Arabia from site engineers and project managers (n = 295), statistical analyses were carried out, including confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling to assess the model and test the hypotheses. The main results indicated that safety motivation could positively influence safety behaviour through safety climate, which plays a mediating role for this mechanism. The results also confirmed that safety behaviour could predict safety outcomes within the context of the Saudi Arabian construction industry.

Associations between safety climate and safety management practices in the construction industry.

PubMed

Marín, Luz S; Lipscomb, Hester; Cifuentes, Manuel; Punnett, Laura

2017-06-01

Safety climate, a group-level measure of workers' perceptions regarding management's safety priorities, has been suggested as a key predictor of safety outcomes. However, its relationship with actual injury rates is inconsistent. We posit that safety climate may instead be a parallel outcome of workplace safety practices, rather than a determinant of workers' safety behaviors or outcomes. Using a sample of 25 commercial construction companies in Colombia, selected by injury rate stratum (high, medium, low), we examined the relationship between workers' safety climate perceptions and safety management practices (SMPs) reported by safety officers. Workers' perceptions of safety climate were independent of their own company's implementation of SMPs, as measured here, and its injury rates. However, injury rates were negatively related to the implementation of SMPs. Safety management practices may be more important than workers' perceptions of safety climate as direct predictors of injury rates. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Safety climate and culture: Integrating psychological and systems perspectives.

PubMed

Casey, Tristan; Griffin, Mark A; Flatau Harrison, Huw; Neal, Andrew

2017-07-01

Safety climate research has reached a mature stage of development, with a number of meta-analyses demonstrating the link between safety climate and safety outcomes. More recently, there has been interest from systems theorists in integrating the concept of safety culture and to a lesser extent, safety climate into systems-based models of organizational safety. Such models represent a theoretical and practical development of the safety climate concept by positioning climate as part of a dynamic work system in which perceptions of safety act to constrain and shape employee behavior. We propose safety climate and safety culture constitute part of the enabling capitals through which organizations build safety capability. We discuss how organizations can deploy different configurations of enabling capital to exert control over work systems and maintain safe and productive performance. We outline 4 key strategies through which organizations to reconcile the system control problems of promotion versus prevention, and stability versus flexibility. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

An overview of patient safety climate in the VA.

PubMed

Hartmann, Christine W; Rosen, Amy K; Meterko, Mark; Shokeen, Priti; Zhao, Shibei; Singer, Sara; Falwell, Alyson; Gaba, David M

2008-08-01

To assess variation in safety climate across VA hospitals nationally. Data were collected from employees at 30 VA hospitals over a 6-month period using the Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations survey. We sampled 100 percent of senior managers and physicians and a random 10 percent of other employees. At 10 randomly selected hospitals, we sampled an additional 100 percent of employees working in units with intrinsically higher hazards (high-hazard units [HHUs]). Data were collected using an anonymous survey design. We received 4,547 responses (49 percent response rate). The percent problematic response--lower percent reflecting higher levels of patient safety climate--ranged from 12.0-23.7 percent across hospitals (mean=17.5 percent). Differences in safety climate emerged by management level, clinician status, and workgroup. Supervisors and front-line staff reported lower levels of safety climate than senior managers; clinician responses reflected lower levels of safety climate than those of nonclinicians; and responses of employees in HHUs reflected lower levels of safety climate than those of workers in other areas. This is the first systematic study of patient safety climate in VA hospitals. Findings indicate an overall positive safety climate across the VA, but there is room for improvement.

Hospital safety climate surveys: measurement issues.

PubMed

Jackson, Jeanette; Sarac, Cakil; Flin, Rhona

2010-12-01

Organizational safety culture relates to behavioural norms in the workplace and is usually assessed by safety climate surveys. These can be a diagnostic indicator on the state of safety in a hospital. This review examines recent studies using staff surveys of hospital safety climate, focussing on measurement issues. Four questionnaires (hospital survey on patient safety culture, safety attitudes questionnaire, patient safety climate in healthcare organizations, hospital safety climate scale), with acceptable psychometric properties, are now applied across countries and clinical settings. Comparisons for benchmarking must be made with caution in case of questionnaire modifications. Increasing attention is being paid to the unit and hospital level wherein distinct cultures may be located, as well as to associated measurement and study design issues. Predictive validity of safety climate is tested against safety behaviours/outcomes, with some relationships reported, although effects may be specific to professional groups/units. Few studies test the role of intervening variables that could influence the effect of climate on outcomes. Hospital climate studies are becoming a key component of healthcare safety management systems. Large datasets have established more reliable instruments that allow a more focussed investigation of the role of culture in the improvement and maintenance of staff's safety perceptions within units, as well as within hospitals.

Employer, use of personal protective equipment, and work safety climate: Latino poultry processing workers.

PubMed

Arcury, Thomas A; Grzywacz, Joseph G; Anderson, Andrea M; Mora, Dana C; Carrillo, Lourdes; Chen, Haiying; Quandt, Sara A

2013-02-01

This analysis describes the work safety climate of Latino poultry processing workers and notes differences by worker personal characteristics and employer; describes the use of common personal protective equipment (PPE) among workers; and examines the associations of work safety climate with use of common PPE. Data are from a cross-sectional study of 403 Latino poultry processing workers in western North Carolina. Work safety climate differed little by personal characteristics, but it did differ consistently by employer. Provision of PPE varied; for example, 27.2% of participants were provide with eye protection at no cost, 57.0% were provided with hand protection at no cost, and 84.7% were provided with protective clothing at no cost. PPE use varied by type. Provision of PPE at no cost was associated with lower work safety climate; this result was counter-intuitive. Consistent use of PPE was associated with higher work safety climate. Work safety climate is important for improving workplace safety for immigrant workers. Research among immigrant workers should document work safety climate for different employers and industries, and delineate how work safety climate affects safety behavior and injuries. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Do Leadership Style, Unit Climate, and Safety Climate Contribute to Safe Medication Practices?

PubMed

Farag, Amany; Tullai-McGuinness, Susan; Anthony, Mary K; Burant, Christopher

2017-01-01

This study aims at: examining if leadership style and unit climate predict safety climate; and testing the direct, indirect, and total effect of leadership style, unit climate, and safety climate on nurses' safe medication practices. The Institute of Medicine and nursing scholars propose that safety climate is a prerequisite to safety practices. However, there is limited empirical evidence about factors contributing to the development of safety climate and about the association with nurses' safe medication practices. This cross-sectional study used survey data from 246 RNs working in a Magnet® hospital. Leadership style and unit climate predicted 20% to 50% of variance on all safety climate dimensions. Model testing revealed the indirect impact of leadership style and unit climate on nurses' safe medication practices. Our hypothesized model explained small amount of the variance on nurses' safe medication practices. This finding suggests that nurses' safe medication practices are influenced by multiple contextual and personal factors that should be further examined.

The predictive validity of safety climate.

PubMed

Johnson, Stephen E

2007-01-01

Safety professionals have increasingly turned their attention to social science for insight into the causation of industrial accidents. One social construct, safety climate, has been examined by several researchers [Cooper, M. D., & Phillips, R. A. (2004). Exploratory analysis of the safety climate and safety behavior relationship. Journal of Safety Research, 35(5), 497-512; Gillen, M., Baltz, D., Gassel, M., Kirsch, L., & Vacarro, D. (2002). Perceived safety climate, job Demands, and coworker support among union and nonunion injured construction workers. Journal of Safety Research, 33(1), 33-51; Neal, A., & Griffin, M. A. (2002). Safety climate and safety behaviour. Australian Journal of Management, 27, 66-76; Zohar, D. (2000). A group-level model of safety climate: Testing the effect of group climate on microaccidents in manufacturing jobs. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(4), 587-596; Zohar, D., & Luria, G. (2005). A multilevel model of safety climate: Cross-level relationships between organization and group-level climates. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(4), 616-628] who have documented its importance as a factor explaining the variation of safety-related outcomes (e.g., behavior, accidents). Researchers have developed instruments for measuring safety climate and have established some degree of psychometric reliability and validity. The problem, however, is that predictive validity has not been firmly established, which reduces the credibility of safety climate as a meaningful social construct. The research described in this article addresses this problem and provides additional support for safety climate as a viable construct and as a predictive indicator of safety-related outcomes. This study used 292 employees at three locations of a heavy manufacturing organization to complete the 16 item Zohar Safety Climate Questionnaire (ZSCQ) [Zohar, D., & Luria, G. (2005). A multilevel model of safety climate: Cross-level relationships between organization and group-level climates. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(4), 616-628]. In addition, safety behavior and accident experience data were collected for 5 months following the survey and were statistically analyzed (structural equation modeling, confirmatory factor analysis, exploratory factor analysis, etc.) to identify correlations, associations, internal consistency, and factorial structures. Results revealed that the ZSCQ: (a) was psychometrically reliable and valid, (b) served as an effective predictor of safety-related outcomes (behavior and accident experience), and (c) could be trimmed to an 11 item survey with little loss of explanatory power. Practitioners and researchers can use the ZSCQ with reasonable certainty of the questionnaire's reliability and validity. This provides a solid foundation for the development of meaningful organizational interventions and/or continued research into social factors affecting industrial accident experience.

Speaking up about traditional and professionalism-related patient safety threats: a national survey of interns and residents.

PubMed

Martinez, William; Lehmann, Lisa Soleymani; Thomas, Eric J; Etchegaray, Jason M; Shelburne, Julia T; Hickson, Gerald B; Brady, Donald W; Schleyer, Anneliese M; Best, Jennifer A; May, Natalie B; Bell, Sigall K

2017-11-01

Open communication between healthcare professionals about care concerns, also known as 'speaking up', is essential to patient safety. Compare interns' and residents' experiences, attitudes and factors associated with speaking up about traditional versus professionalism-related safety threats. Anonymous, cross-sectional survey. Six US academic medical centres, 2013-2014. 1800 medical and surgical interns and residents (47% responded). Attitudes about, barriers and facilitators for, and self-reported experience with speaking up. Likelihood of speaking up and the potential for patient harm in two vignettes. Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ) teamwork and safety scales; and Speaking Up Climate for Patient Safety (SUC-Safe) and Speaking Up Climate for Professionalism (SUC-Prof) scales. Respondents more commonly observed unprofessional behaviour (75%, 628/837) than traditional safety threats (49%, 410/837); p<0.001, but reported speaking up about unprofessional behaviour less commonly (46%, 287/628 vs 71%, 291/410; p<0.001). Respondents more commonly reported fear of conflict as a barrier to speaking up about unprofessional behaviour compared with traditional safety threats (58%, 482/837 vs 42%, 348/837; p<0.001). Respondents were also less likely to speak up to an attending physician in the professionalism vignette than the traditional safety vignette, even when they perceived high potential patient harm (20%, 49/251 vs 71%, 179/251; p<0.001). Positive perceptions of SAQ teamwork climate and SUC-Safe were independently associated with speaking up in the traditional safety vignette (OR 1.90, 99% CI 1.36 to 2.66 and 1.46, 1.02 to 2.09, respectively), while only a positive perception of SUC-Prof was associated with speaking up in the professionalism vignette (1.76, 1.23 to 2.50). Interns and residents commonly observed unprofessional behaviour yet were less likely to speak up about it compared with traditional safety threats even when they perceived high potential patient harm. Measuring SUC-Safe, and particularly SUC-Prof, may fill an existing gap in safety culture assessment. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Civility norms, safety climate, and safety outcomes: a preliminary investigation.

PubMed

McGonagle, Alyssa K; Walsh, Benjamin M; Kath, Lisa M; Morrow, Stephanie L

2014-10-01

Working environments that are both civil and safe are good for business and employee well-being. Civility has been empirically linked to such important outcomes as organizational performance and individuals' positive work-related attitudes, yet research relating civility to safety is lacking. In this study, we link perceptions of civility norms to perceptions of safety climate and safety outcomes. Drawing on social exchange theory, we proposed and tested a model in 2 samples wherein civility norms indirectly relate to safety outcomes through associations with various safety climate facets. Our results supported direct relationships between civility and management safety climate and coworker safety climate. Additionally, indirect effects of civility norms on unsafe behaviors and injuries were observed. Indirect effects of civility norms on unsafe behaviors were observed through coworker safety climate and work-safety tension. Indirect effects of civility norms on injuries were observed through management safety climate and work-safety tension for full-time employees, although these effects did not hold for part-time employees. This study provides initial evidence that researchers and practitioners may want to look beyond safety climate to civility norms to more comprehensively understand the origins of unsafe behaviors and injuries and to develop appropriate preventive interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

Safety compliance and safety climate: A repeated cross-sectional study in the oil and gas industry.

PubMed

Kvalheim, Sverre A; Dahl, Øyvind

2016-12-01

Violations of safety rules and procedures are commonly identified as a causal factor in accidents in the oil and gas industry. Extensive knowledge on effective management practices related to improved compliance with safety procedures is therefore needed. Previous studies of the causal relationship between safety climate and safety compliance demonstrate that the propensity to act in accordance with prevailing rules and procedures is influenced to a large degree by workers' safety climate. Commonly, the climate measures employed differ from one study to another and identical measures of safety climate are seldom tested repeatedly over extended periods of time. This research gap is addressed in the present study. The study is based on a survey conducted four times among sharp-end workers of the Norwegian oil and gas industry (N=31,350). This is done by performing multiple tests (regression analysis) over a period of 7years of the causal relationship between safety climate and safety compliance. The safety climate measure employed is identical across the 7-year period. Taking all periods together, the employed safety climate model explained roughly 27% of the variance in safety compliance. The causal relationship was found to be stable across the period, thereby increasing the reliability and the predictive validity of the factor structure. The safety climate factor that had the most powerful effect on safety compliance was work pressure. The factor structure employed shows high predictive validity and should therefore be relevant to organizations seeking to improve safety in the petroleum sector. The findings should also be relevant to other high-hazard industries where safety rules and procedures constitute a central part of the approach to managing safety. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd and National Safety Council. All rights reserved.

The patient safety climate in healthcare organizations (PSCHO) survey: Short-form development.

PubMed

Benzer, Justin K; Meterko, Mark; Singer, Sara J

2017-08-01

Measures of safety climate are increasingly used to guide safety improvement initiatives. However, cost and respondent burden may limit the use of safety climate surveys. The purpose of this study was to develop a 15- to 20-item safety climate survey based on the Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations survey, a well-validated 38-item measure of safety climate. The Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations was administered to all senior managers, all physicians, and a 10% random sample of all other hospital personnel in 69 private sector hospitals and 30 Veterans Health Administration hospitals. Both samples were randomly divided into a derivation sample to identify a short-form subset and a confirmation sample to assess the psychometric properties of the proposed short form. The short form consists of 15 items represented 3 overarching domains in the long-form scale-organization, work unit, and interpersonal. The proposed short form efficiently captures 3 important sources of variance in safety climate: organizational, work-unit, and interpersonal. The short-form development process was a practical method that can be applied to other safety climate surveys. This safety climate short form may increase response rates in studies that involve busy clinicians or repeated measures. Published 2017. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Multilevel model of safety climate for furniture industries.

PubMed

Rodrigues, Matilde A; Arezes, Pedro M; Leão, Celina P

2015-01-01

Furniture companies can analyze their safety status using quantitative measures. However, the data needed are not always available and the number of accidents is under-reported. Safety climate scales may be an alternative. However, there are no validated Portuguese scales that account for the specific attributes of the furniture sector. The current study aims to develop and validate an instrument that uses a multilevel structure to measure the safety climate of the Portuguese furniture industry. The Safety Climate in Wood Industries (SCWI) model was developed and applied to the safety climate analysis using three different scales: organizational, group and individual. A multilevel exploratory factor analysis was performed to analyze the factorial structure. The studied companies' safety conditions were also analyzed. Different factorial structures were found between and within levels. In general, the results show the presence of a group-level safety climate. The scores of safety climates are directly and positively related to companies' safety conditions; the organizational scale is the one that best reflects the actual safety conditions. The SCWI instrument allows for the identification of different safety climates in groups that comprise the same furniture company and it seems to reflect those groups' safety conditions. The study also demonstrates the need for a multilevel analysis of the studied instrument.

A longitudinal study of an intervention to improve road safety climate: climate as an organizational boundary spanner.

PubMed

Naveh, Eitan; Katz-Navon, Tal

2015-01-01

This study presents and tests an intervention to enhance organizational climate and expands existing conceptualization of organizational climate to include its influence on employee behaviors outside the organization's physical boundaries. In addition, by integrating the literatures of climate and work-family interface, the study explored climate spillover and crossover from work to the home domain. Focusing on an applied practical problem within organizations, we investigated the example of road safety climate and employees' and their families' driving, using a longitudinal study design of road safety intervention versus control groups. Results demonstrated that the intervention increased road safety climate and decreased the number of traffic violation tickets and that road safety climate mediated the relationship between the intervention and the number of traffic violation tickets. Road safety climate spilled over to the family domain but did not cross over to influence family members' driving. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

Workplace injuries, safety climate and behaviors: application of an artificial neural network.

PubMed

Abubakar, A Mohammed; Karadal, Himmet; Bayighomog, Steven W; Merdan, Ethem

2018-05-09

This article proposes and tests a model for the interaction effect of the organizational safety climate and behaviors on workplace injuries. Using artificial neural network and survey data from 306 metal casting industry employees in central Anatolia, we found that an organizational safety climate mitigates workplace injuries, and safety behaviors enforce the strength of the negative impact of the safety climate on workplace injuries. The results suggest a complex relationship between the organizational safety climate, safety behavior and workplace injuries. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in light of decreasing workplace injuries in the Anatolian metal casting industry.

A mediation model linking dispatcher leadership and work ownership with safety climate as predictors of truck driver safety performance.

PubMed

Zohar, Dov; Huang, Yueng-hsiang; Lee, Jin; Robertson, Michelle

2014-01-01

The study was designed to test the effect of safety climate on safety behavior among lone employees whose work environment promotes individual rather than consensual or shared climate perceptions. The paper presents a mediation path model linking psychological (individual-level) safety climate antecedents and consequences as predictors of driving safety of long-haul truck drivers. Climate antecedents included dispatcher (distant) leadership and driver work ownership, two contextual attributes of lone work, whereas its proximal consequence included driving safety. Using a prospective design, safety outcomes, consisting of hard-braking frequency (i.e. traffic near-miss events) were collected six months after survey completion, using GPS-based truck deceleration data. Results supported the hypothesized model, indicating that distant leadership style and work ownership promote psychological safety climate perceptions, with subsequent prediction of hard-braking events mediated by driving safety. Theoretical and practical implications for studying safety climate among lone workers in general and professional drivers in particular are discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Assessing safety climate in acute hospital settings: a systematic review of the adequacy of the psychometric properties of survey measurement tools.

PubMed

Alsalem, Gheed; Bowie, Paul; Morrison, Jillian

2018-05-10

The perceived importance of safety culture in improving patient safety and its impact on patient outcomes has led to a growing interest in the assessment of safety climate in healthcare organizations; however, the rigour with which safety climate tools were developed and psychometrically tested was shown to be variable. This paper aims to identify and review questionnaire studies designed to measure safety climate in acute hospital settings, in order to assess the adequacy of reported psychometric properties of identified tools. A systematic review of published empirical literature was undertaken to examine sample characteristics and instrument details including safety climate dimensions, origin and theoretical basis, and extent of psychometric evaluation (content validity, criterion validity, construct validity and internal reliability). Five questionnaire tools, designed for general evaluation of safety climate in acute hospital settings, were included. Detailed inspection revealed ambiguity around concepts of safety culture and climate, safety climate dimensions and the methodological rigour associated with the design of these measures. Standard reporting of the psychometric properties of developed questionnaires was variable, although evidence of an improving trend in the quality of the reported psychometric properties of studies was noted. Evidence of the theoretical underpinnings of climate tools was limited, while a lack of clarity in the relationship between safety culture and patient outcome measures still exists. Evidence of the adequacy of the psychometric development of safety climate questionnaire tools is still limited. Research is necessary to resolve the controversies in the definitions and dimensions of safety culture and climate in healthcare and identify related inconsistencies. More importance should be given to the appropriate validation of safety climate questionnaires before extending their usage in healthcare contexts different from those in which they were originally developed. Mixed methods research to understand why psychometric assessment and measurement reporting practices can be inadequate and lacking in a theoretical basis is also necessary.

Transport company safety climate-The impact on truck driver behavior and crash involvement.

PubMed

Sullman, Mark J M; Stephens, Amanda N; Pajo, Karl

2017-04-03

The present study investigated the relationships between safety climate and driving behavior and crash involvement. A total of 339 company-employed truck drivers completed a questionnaire that measured their perceptions of safety climate, crash record, speed choice, and aberrant driving behaviors (errors, lapses, and violations). Although there was no direct relationship between the drivers' perceptions of safety climate and crash involvement, safety climate was a significant predictor of engagement in risky driving behaviors, which were in turn predictive of crash involvement. This research shows that safety climate may offer an important starting point for interventions aimed at reducing risky driving behavior and thus fewer vehicle collisions.

The Impact of Transformational Leadership on Safety Climate and Individual Safety Behavior on Construction Sites.

PubMed

Shen, Yuzhong; Ju, Chuanjing; Koh, Tas Yong; Rowlinson, Steve; Bridge, Adrian J

2017-01-05

Unsafe acts contribute dominantly to construction accidents, and increasing safety behavior is essential to reduce accidents. Previous research conceptualized safety behavior as an interaction between proximal individual differences (safety knowledge and safety motivation) and distal contextual factors (leadership and safety climate). However, relatively little empirical research has examined this conceptualization in the construction sector. Given the cultural background of the sample, this study makes a slight modification to the conceptualization and views transformational leadership as an antecedent of safety climate. Accordingly, this study establishes a multiple mediator model showing the mechanisms through which transformational leadership translates into safety behavior. The multiple mediator model is estimated by the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique, using individual questionnaire responses from a random sample of construction personnel based in Hong Kong. As hypothesized, transformational leadership has a significant impact on safety climate which is mediated by safety-specific leader-member exchange (LMX), and safety climate in turn impacts safety behavior through safety knowledge. The results suggest that future safety climate interventions should be more effective if supervisors exhibit transformational leadership, encourage construction personnel to voice safety concerns without fear of retaliation, and repeatedly remind them about safety on the job.

The Impact of Transformational Leadership on Safety Climate and Individual Safety Behavior on Construction Sites

PubMed Central

Shen, Yuzhong; Ju, Chuanjing; Koh, Tas Yong; Rowlinson, Steve; Bridge, Adrian J.

2017-01-01

Unsafe acts contribute dominantly to construction accidents, and increasing safety behavior is essential to reduce accidents. Previous research conceptualized safety behavior as an interaction between proximal individual differences (safety knowledge and safety motivation) and distal contextual factors (leadership and safety climate). However, relatively little empirical research has examined this conceptualization in the construction sector. Given the cultural background of the sample, this study makes a slight modification to the conceptualization and views transformational leadership as an antecedent of safety climate. Accordingly, this study establishes a multiple mediator model showing the mechanisms through which transformational leadership translates into safety behavior. The multiple mediator model is estimated by the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique, using individual questionnaire responses from a random sample of construction personnel based in Hong Kong. As hypothesized, transformational leadership has a significant impact on safety climate which is mediated by safety-specific leader–member exchange (LMX), and safety climate in turn impacts safety behavior through safety knowledge. The results suggest that future safety climate interventions should be more effective if supervisors exhibit transformational leadership, encourage construction personnel to voice safety concerns without fear of retaliation, and repeatedly remind them about safety on the job. PMID:28067775

Positive organizational behavior and safety in the offshore oil industry: Exploring the determinants of positive safety climate.

PubMed

Hystad, Sigurd W; Bartone, Paul T; Eid, Jarle

2014-01-01

Much research has now documented the substantial influence of safety climate on a range of important outcomes in safety critical organizations, but there has been scant attention to the question of what factors might be responsible for positive or negative safety climate. The present paper draws from positive organizational behavior theory to test workplace and individual factors that may affect safety climate. Specifically, we explore the potential influence of authentic leadership style and psychological capital on safety climate and risk outcomes. Across two samples of offshore oil-workers and seafarers working on oil platform supply ships, structural equation modeling yielded results that support a model in which authentic leadership exerts a direct effect on safety climate, as well as an indirect effect via psychological capital. This study shows the importance of leadership qualities as well as psychological factors in shaping a positive work safety climate and lowering the risk of accidents.

Positive organizational behavior and safety in the offshore oil industry: Exploring the determinants of positive safety climate

PubMed Central

Hystad, Sigurd W.; Bartone, Paul T.; Eid, Jarle

2013-01-01

Much research has now documented the substantial influence of safety climate on a range of important outcomes in safety critical organizations, but there has been scant attention to the question of what factors might be responsible for positive or negative safety climate. The present paper draws from positive organizational behavior theory to test workplace and individual factors that may affect safety climate. Specifically, we explore the potential influence of authentic leadership style and psychological capital on safety climate and risk outcomes. Across two samples of offshore oil-workers and seafarers working on oil platform supply ships, structural equation modeling yielded results that support a model in which authentic leadership exerts a direct effect on safety climate, as well as an indirect effect via psychological capital. This study shows the importance of leadership qualities as well as psychological factors in shaping a positive work safety climate and lowering the risk of accidents. PMID:24454524

An Overview of Patient Safety Climate in the VA

PubMed Central

Hartmann, Christine W; Rosen, Amy K; Meterko, Mark; Shokeen, Priti; Zhao, Shibei; Singer, Sara; Falwell, Alyson; Gaba, David M

2008-01-01

Objective To assess variation in safety climate across VA hospitals nationally. Study Setting Data were collected from employees at 30 VA hospitals over a 6-month period using the Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations survey. Study Design We sampled 100 percent of senior managers and physicians and a random 10 percent of other employees. At 10 randomly selected hospitals, we sampled an additional 100 percent of employees working in units with intrinsically higher hazards (high-hazard units [HHUs]). Data Collection Data were collected using an anonymous survey design. Principal Findings We received 4,547 responses (49 percent response rate). The percent problematic response—lower percent reflecting higher levels of patient safety climate—ranged from 12.0–23.7 percent across hospitals (mean=17.5 percent). Differences in safety climate emerged by management level, clinician status, and workgroup. Supervisors and front-line staff reported lower levels of safety climate than senior managers; clinician responses reflected lower levels of safety climate than those of nonclinicians; and responses of employees in HHUs reflected lower levels of safety climate than those of workers in other areas. Conclusions This is the first systematic study of patient safety climate in VA hospitals. Findings indicate an overall positive safety climate across the VA, but there is room for improvement. PMID:18355257

The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire: psychometric properties, benchmarking data, and emerging research.

PubMed

Sexton, John B; Helmreich, Robert L; Neilands, Torsten B; Rowan, Kathy; Vella, Keryn; Boyden, James; Roberts, Peter R; Thomas, Eric J

2006-04-03

There is widespread interest in measuring healthcare provider attitudes about issues relevant to patient safety (often called safety climate or safety culture). Here we report the psychometric properties, establish benchmarking data, and discuss emerging areas of research with the University of Texas Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. Six cross-sectional surveys of health care providers (n = 10,843) in 203 clinical areas (including critical care units, operating rooms, inpatient settings, and ambulatory clinics) in three countries (USA, UK, New Zealand). Multilevel factor analyses yielded results at the clinical area level and the respondent nested within clinical area level. We report scale reliability, floor/ceiling effects, item factor loadings, inter-factor correlations, and percentage of respondents who agree with each item and scale. A six factor model of provider attitudes fit to the data at both the clinical area and respondent nested within clinical area levels. The factors were: Teamwork Climate, Safety Climate, Perceptions of Management, Job Satisfaction, Working Conditions, and Stress Recognition. Scale reliability was 0.9. Provider attitudes varied greatly both within and among organizations. Results are presented to allow benchmarking among organizations and emerging research is discussed. The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire demonstrated good psychometric properties. Healthcare organizations can use the survey to measure caregiver attitudes about six patient safety-related domains, to compare themselves with other organizations, to prompt interventions to improve safety attitudes and to measure the effectiveness of these interventions.

Impact of individual resilience and safety climate on safety performance and psychological stress of construction workers: A case study of the Ontario construction industry.

PubMed

Chen, Yuting; McCabe, Brenda; Hyatt, Douglas

2017-06-01

The construction industry has hit a plateau in terms of safety performance. Safety climate is regarded as a leading indicator of safety performance; however, relatively little safety climate research has been done in the Canadian construction industry. Safety climate may be geographically sensitive, thus it is necessary to examine how the construct of safety climate is defined and used to improve safety performance in different regions. On the other hand, more and more attention has been paid to job related stress in the construction industry. Previous research proposed that individual resilience may be associated with a better safety performance and may help employees manage stress. Unfortunately, few empirical research studies have examined this hypothesis. This paper aims to examine the role of safety climate and individual resilience in safety performance and job stress in the Canadian construction industry. The research was based on 837 surveys collected in Ontario between June 2015 and June 2016. Structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques were used to explore the impact of individual resilience and safety climate on physical safety outcomes and on psychological stress among construction workers. The results show that safety climate not only affected construction workers' safety performance but also indirectly affected their psychological stress. In addition, it was found that individual resilience had a direct negative impact on psychological stress but had no impact on physical safety outcomes. These findings highlight the roles of both organizational and individual factors in individual safety performance and in psychological well-being. Construction organizations need to not only monitor employees' safety performance, but also to assess their employees' psychological well-being. Promoting a positive safety climate together with developing training programs focusing on improving employees' psychological health - especially post-trauma psychological health - can improve the safety performance of an organization. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Safety climate in university and college laboratories: impact of organizational and individual factors.

PubMed

Wu, Tsung-Chih; Liu, Chi-Wei; Lu, Mu-Chen

2007-01-01

Universities and colleges serve to be institutions of education excellence; however, problems in the areas of occupational safety may undermine such goals. Occupational safety must be the concern of every employee in the organization, regardless of job position. Safety climate surveys have been suggested as important tools for measuring the effectiveness and improvement direction of safety programs. Thus, this study aims to investigate the influence of organizational and individual factors on safety climate in university and college laboratories. Employees at 100 universities and colleges in Taiwan were mailed a self-administered questionnaire survey; the response rate was 78%. Multivariate analysis of variance revealed that organizational category of ownership, the presence of a safety manager and safety committee, gender, age, title, accident experience, and safety training significantly affected the climate. Among them, accident experience and safety training affected the climate with practical significance. The authors recommend that managers should address important factors affecting safety issues and then create a positive climate by enforcing continuous improvements.

Trends in pharmacy staff's perception of patient safety in Swedish community pharmacies after re-regulation of conditions.

PubMed

Kälvemark Sporrong, Sofia; Nordén-Hägg, Annika

2014-10-01

All changes in the regulation of pharmacies have an impact on the work carried out in pharmacies and also on patient safety, regardless of whether this is the intention or not. To compare staff apprehension regarding some aspects of patient safety and quality in community pharmacies prior to and after the 2009 changes in regulation of the Swedish community pharmacy market. Questionnaires targeted at pharmacy staff before and after the changes in regulation (in 2008, 2011/12, and 2012/13 respectively) used four identical items, making comparisons of some aspects possible. All four items demonstrated a significant decrease in the first survey after the changes as compared to before. In the second survey significant differences were found on the two items representing safety climate whereas the items representing team climate and management showed no significant differences. The comparison carried out in this study indicates a negative effect in Swedish community pharmacies on safety and quality issues, as experienced by pharmacy staff. It is recommended that the possible effects of healthcare reforms are assessed before implementation, in order to counteract conceivable decline in factors including patient safety and working conditions.

Job characteristics and safety climate: the role of effort-reward and demand-control-support models.

PubMed

Phipps, Denham L; Malley, Christine; Ashcroft, Darren M

2012-07-01

While safety climate is widely recognized as a key influence on organizational safety, there remain questions about the nature of its antecedents. One potential influence on safety climate is job characteristics (that is, psychosocial features of the work environment). This study investigated the relationship between two job characteristics models--demand-control-support (Karasek & Theorell, 1990) and effort-reward imbalance (Siegrist, 1996)--and safety climate. A survey was conducted with a random sample of 860 British retail pharmacists, using the job contents questionnaire (JCQ), effort-reward imbalance indicator (ERI) and a measure of safety climate in pharmacies. Multivariate data analyses found that: (a) both models contributed to the prediction of safety climate ratings, with the demand-control-support model making the largest contribution; (b) there were some interactions between demand, control and support from the JCQ in the prediction of safety climate scores. The latter finding suggests the presence of "active learning" with respect to safety improvement in high demand, high control settings. The findings provide further insight into the ways in which job characteristics relate to safety, both individually and at an aggregated level.

Does Employee Safety Matter for Patients Too? Employee Safety Climate and Patient Safety Culture in Health Care.

PubMed

Mohr, David C; Eaton, Jennifer Lipkowitz; McPhaul, Kathleen M; Hodgson, Michael J

2015-04-22

We examined relationships between employee safety climate and patient safety culture. Because employee safety may be a precondition for the development of patient safety, we hypothesized that employee safety culture would be strongly and positively related to patient safety culture. An employee safety climate survey was administered in 2010 and assessed employees' views and experiences of safety for employees. The patient safety survey administered in 2011 assessed the safety culture for patients. We performed Pearson correlations and multiple regression analysis to examine the relationships between a composite measure of employee safety with subdimensions of patient safety culture. The regression models controlled for size, geographic characteristics, and teaching affiliation. Analyses were conducted at the group level using data from 132 medical centers. Higher employee safety climate composite scores were positively associated with all 9 patient safety culture measures examined. Standardized multivariate regression coefficients ranged from 0.44 to 0.64. Medical facilities where staff have more positive perceptions of health care workplace safety climate tended to have more positive assessments of patient safety culture. This suggests that patient safety culture and employee safety climate could be mutually reinforcing, such that investments and improvements in one domain positively impacts the other. Further research is needed to better understand the nexus between health care employee and patient safety to generalize and act upon findings.

Development and validation of safety climate scales for mobile remote workers using utility/electrical workers as exemplar.

PubMed

Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Zohar, Dov; Robertson, Michelle M; Garabet, Angela; Murphy, Lauren A; Lee, Jin

2013-10-01

The objective of this study was to develop and test the reliability and validity of a new scale designed for measuring safety climate among mobile remote workers, using utility/electrical workers as exemplar. The new scale employs perceived safety priority as the metric of safety climate and a multi-level framework, separating the measurement of organization- and group-level safety climate items into two sub-scales. The question of the emergence of shared perceptions among remote workers was also examined. For the initial survey development, several items were adopted from a generic safety climate scale and new industry-specific items were generated based on an extensive literature review, expert judgment, 15-day field observations, and 38 in-depth individual interviews with subject matter experts (i.e., utility industry electrical workers, trainers and supervisors of electrical workers). The items were revised after 45 cognitive interviews and a pre-test with 139 additional utility/electrical workers. The revised scale was subsequently implemented with a total of 2421 workers at two large US electric utility companies (1560 participants for the pilot company and 861 for the second company). Both exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were adopted to finalize the items and to ensure construct validity. Reliability of the scale was tested based on Cronbach's α. Homogeneity tests examined whether utility/electrical workers' safety climate perceptions were shared within the same supervisor group. This was followed by an analysis of the criterion-related validity, which linked the safety climate scores to self-reports of safety behavior and injury outcomes (i.e., recordable incidents, missing days due to work-related injuries, vehicle accidents, and near misses). Six dimensions (Safety pro-activity, General training, Trucks and equipment, Field orientation, Financial Investment, and Schedule flexibility) with 29 items were extracted from the EFA to measure the organization-level safety climate. Three dimensions (Supervisory care, Participation encouragement, and Safety straight talk) with 19 items were extracted to measure the group-level safety climate. Acceptable ranges of internal consistency statistics for the sub-scales were observed. Whether or not to aggregate these multi-dimensions of safety climate into a single higher-order construct (overall safety climate) was discussed. CFAs confirmed the construct validity of the developed safety climate scale for utility/electrical workers. Homogeneity tests showed that utility/electrical workers' safety climate perceptions were shared within the same supervisor group. Both the organization- and group-level safety climate scores showed a statistically significant relationship with workers' self-reported safety behaviors and injury outcomes. A valid and reliable instrument to measure the essential elements of safety climate for utility/electrical workers in the remote working situation has been introduced. The scale can provide an in-depth understanding of safety climate based on its key dimensions and show where improvements can be made at both group and organization levels. As such, it may also offer a valuable starting point for future safety interventions. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Consensus achievement of leadership, organisational and individual factors that influence safety climate: Implications for nursing management.

PubMed

Fischer, Shelly A; Jones, Jacqueline; Verran, Joyce A

2018-01-01

To validate a framework of factors that influence the relationship of transformational leadership and safety climate, and to enable testing of safety chain factors by generating hypotheses regarding their mediating and moderating effects. Understanding the patient safety chain and mechanisms by which leaders affect a strong climate of safety is essential to transformational leadership practice, education, and research. A systematic review of leadership and safety literature was used to develop an organising framework of factors proposed to influence the climate of safety. A panel of 25 international experts in leadership and safety engaged a three-round modified Delphi study with Likert-scored surveys. Eighty per cent of participating experts from six countries were retained to the final survey round. Consensus (>66% agreement) was achieved on 40 factors believed to influence safety climate in the acute care setting. Consensus regarding specific factors that play important roles in an organisation's climate of safety can be reached. Generally, the demonstration of leadership commitment to safety is key to cultivating a culture of patient safety. Transformational nurse leaders should consider and employ all three categories of factors in daily leadership activities and decision-making to drive a strong climate of patient safety. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Safety climate and the distracted driving experiences of truck drivers.

PubMed

Swedler, David I; Pollack, Keshia M; Agnew, Jacqueline

2015-07-01

For truck drivers, distracted driving is a workplace behavior that increases occupational injury risk. We propose safety climate as an appropriate lens through which researchers can examine occupational distracted driving. Using a mixed methods study design, we surveyed truck drivers using the Safety Climate Questionnaire (SCQ) complemented by semi-structured interviews of experts on distracted driving and truck safety. Safety climate was assessed by using the entire SCQ as an overall climate score, followed by factor analysis that identified the following safety climate factors: Communications and Procedures; Management Commitment; and Work Pressure. In multivariate regression, the overall safety climate scale was associated with having ever experienced a crash and/or distraction-involved swerving. Interview participants described how these SCQ constructs could affect occupational distracted driving. To reduce distraction-related crashes in their organizations, management can adhere to safe policies and procedures, invest in engineering controls, and develop safer communication procedures. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Behaving safely under pressure: The effects of job demands, resources, and safety climate on employee physical and psychosocial safety behavior.

PubMed

Bronkhorst, Babette

2015-12-01

Previous research has shown that employees who experience high job demands are more inclined to show unsafe behaviors in the workplace. In this paper, we examine why some employees behave safely when faced with these demands while others do not. We add to the literature by incorporating both physical and psychosocial safety climate in the job demands and resources (JD-R) model and extending it to include physical and psychosocial variants of safety behavior. Using a sample of 6230 health care employees nested within 52 organizations, we examined the relationship between job demands and (a) resources, (b) safety climate, and (c) safety behavior. We conducted multilevel analyses to test our hypotheses. Job demands (i.e., work pressure), job resources (i.e., job autonomy, supervisor support, and co-worker support) and safety climate (both physical and psychosocial safety climate) are directly associated with, respectively, lower and higher physical and psychosocial safety behavior. We also found some evidence that safety climate buffers the negative impact of job demands (i.e., work-family conflict and job insecurity) on safety behavior and strengthens the positive impact of job resources (i.e., co-worker support) on safety behavior. Regardless of whether the focus is physical or psychological safety, our results show that strengthening the safety climate within an organization can increase employees' safety behavior. Practical implication: An organization's safety climate is an optimal target of intervention to prevent and ameliorate negative physical and psychological health and safety outcomes, especially in times of uncertainty and change. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd and National Safety Council. All rights reserved.

Safety climate as a mediator between foundation climates and occupational accidents: a group-level investigation.

PubMed

Wallace, J Craig; Popp, Eric; Mondore, Scott

2006-05-01

Building on recent work in occupational safety and climate, the authors examined 2 organizational foundation climates thought to be antecedents of specific safety climate and the relationships among these climates and occupational accidents. It is believed that both foundation climates (i.e., management-employee relations and organizational support) will predict safety climate, which will in turn mediate the relationship between occupational accidents and these 2 distal foundation climates. Using a sample of 9,429 transportation workers in 253 work groups, the authors tested the proposed relationships at the group level. Results supported all hypotheses. Overall it appears that different climates have direct and indirect effects on occupational accidents.

The role of organizational trust in safety climate's influence on organizational outcomes.

PubMed

Kath, Lisa M; Magley, Vicki J; Marmet, Matthew

2010-09-01

Based on elements of social exchange theory and other conceptualizations of trust, a model was developed situating organizational trust as a central component to the relationship that safety climate has with organizational outcomes. Specifically, the model specified that two facets of safety climate--upward safety communication and management attitudes toward safety--would be positively related to organizational trust. Increased levels of trust would then predict increased motivation to engage in safe job-related behaviors, increased job satisfaction, and decreased turnover intentions. Another hypothesis investigated whether job safety relevance would moderate the relationship between safety climate and trust. Online survey research was conducted with 599 employees from 97 work groups across a New England grocery store chain. Hierarchical linear modeling indicated support for trust mediating the relationship between safety climate and organizational outcomes; further, the relationship between safety climate and trust was stronger within work groups where safety was more relevant. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safety climate in Swiss hospital units: Swiss version of the Safety Climate Survey

PubMed Central

Gehring, Katrin; Mascherek, Anna C.; Bezzola, Paula

2015-01-01

Abstract Rationale, aims and objectives Safety climate measurements are a broadly used element of improvement initiatives. In order to provide a sound and easy‐to‐administer instrument for the use in Swiss hospitals, we translated the Safety Climate Survey into German and French. Methods After translating the Safety Climate Survey into French and German, a cross‐sectional survey study was conducted with health care professionals (HCPs) in operating room (OR) teams and on OR‐related wards in 10 Swiss hospitals. Validity of the instrument was examined by means of Cronbach's alpha and missing rates of the single items. Item‐descriptive statistics group differences and percentage of ‘problematic responses’ (PPR) were calculated. Results 3153 HCPs completed the survey (response rate: 63.4%). 1308 individuals were excluded from the analyses because of a profession other than doctor or nurse or invalid answers (n = 1845; nurses = 1321, doctors = 523). Internal consistency of the translated Safety Climate Survey was good (Cronbach's alpha G erman = 0.86; Cronbach's alpha F rench = 0.84). Missing rates at item level were rather low (0.23–4.3%). We found significant group differences in safety climate values regarding profession, managerial function, work area and time spent in direct patient care. At item level, 14 out of 21 items showed a PPR higher than 10%. Conclusions Results indicate that the French and German translations of the Safety Climate Survey might be a useful measurement instrument for safety climate in Swiss hospital units. Analyses at item level allow for differentiating facets of safety climate into more positive and critical safety climate aspects. PMID:25656302

[Case Study] CityCenter and Cosmopolitan Construction Projects, Las Vegas, Nevada: lessons learned from the use of multiple sources and mixed methods in a safety needs assessment.

PubMed

Gittleman, Janie L; Gardner, Paige C; Haile, Elizabeth; Sampson, Julie M; Cigularov, Konstantin P; Ermann, Erica D; Stafford, Pete; Chen, Peter Y

2010-06-01

The present study describes a response to eight tragic deaths over an eighteen month times span on a fast track construction project on the largest commercial development project in U.S. history. Four versions of a survey were distributed to workers, foremen, superintendents, and senior management. In addition to standard Likert-scale safety climate scale items, an open-ended item was included at the end of the survey. Safety climate perceptions differed by job level. Specifically, management perceived a more positive safety climate as compared to workers. Content analysis of the open-ended item was used to identify important safety and health concerns which might have been overlooked with the qualitative portion of the survey. The surveys were conducted to understand workforce issues of concern with the aim of improving site safety conditions. Such efforts can require minimal investment of resources and time and result in critical feedback for developing interventions affecting organizational structure, management processes, and communication. The most important lesson learned was that gauging differences in perception about site safety can provide critical feedback at all levels of a construction organization. Implementation of multi-level organizational perception surveys can identify major safety issues of concern. Feedback, if acted upon, can potentially result in fewer injuries and fatal events. (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Job characteristics and work safety climate among North Carolina farmworkers with H-2A visas.

PubMed

Arcury, Thomas A; Summers, Phillip; Talton, Jennifer W; Nguyen, Ha T; Chen, Haiying; Quandt, Sara A

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT Migrant farmworkers are a vulnerable population. Migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas are the only agricultural workers with temporary work permits. Little research has directly focused on the job characteristics and work safety of workers with H-2A visas. This analysis (1) describes their personal and job characteristics, job hazards, and stressors; (2) describes their perceived work safety climate; and (3) examines associations of perceived work safety climate with job characteristics, job hazards, and stressors. Data are from a cross-sectional component of a larger study of farmworker pesticide exposure; in 2012 interviews were conducted with 163 migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas in North Carolina. The sample was limited to men aged 30 to 70 years. Migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas experience the same hazards as do other farmworkers. Their mean score on the Perceived Work Safety Climate Scale 25.5 (SD = 3.7) is similar to that of other farmworkers and other immigrant workers. Perceived work safety climate is associated with hours worked per week (P = .02), precarious employment (P < .001), planting and cultivating (P = .002), topping tobacco (P = .0012), and stress (P = .02). Perceived work safety climate is particularly important for migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas because their labor contracts limit their options to change employers. Additional research on the status of work safety climate among agricultural workers is needed, as well as on the factors that affect work safety climate and on the safety characteristics that are affected by work safety climate. Policy changes that lead to improved work safety climate should be considered.

Job Characteristics and Work Safety Climate among North Carolina Farmworkers with H-2A Visas

PubMed Central

Arcury, Thomas A.; Summers, Phillip; Talton, Jennifer W.; Nguyen, Ha T.; Chen, Haiying; Quandt, Sara A.

2016-01-01

Migrant farmworkers are a vulnerable population. Migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas are the only agricultural workers with temporary work permits. Little research has directly focused on the job characteristics and work safety of workers with H-2A visas. This analysis (1) describes their personal and job characteristics, job hazards, and stressors; (2) describes their perceived work safety climate; and (3) examines associations of perceived work safety climate with job characteristics, job hazards, and stressors. Data are from a cross-sectional component of a larger study of farmworker pesticide exposure; in 2012 interviews were conducted with 163 migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas in North Carolina. The sample was limited to men aged 30 to 70 years. Migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas experience the same hazards as do other farmworkers. Their mean score on the perceived work safety climate scale 25.5 (SD=3.7) is similar to that of other farmworkers and other immigrant workers. Perceived work safety climate is associated with hours worked per week (p=0.02), precarious employment (p<0.001), planting and cultivating (p=0.002); topping tobacco (p=0.0012), and stress (p=0.02). Perceived work safety climate is particularly important for migrant farmworkers with H-2A visas because their labor contracts limit their options to change employers. Additional research on the status of work safety climate among agricultural workers is needed, as well as on the factors that affect work safety climate and on the safety characteristics that are affected by work safety climate. Policy changes that lead to improved work safety climate should be considered. PMID:25635744

Safety climate and firefighting: Focus group results.

PubMed

DeJoy, David M; Smith, Todd D; Dyal, Mari-Amanda

2017-09-01

Firefighting is a hazardous occupation and there have been numerous calls for fundamental changes in how fire service organizations approach safety and balance safety with other operational priorities. These calls, however, have yielded little systematic research. As part of a larger project to develop and test a model of safety climate for the fire service, focus groups were used to identify potentially important dimensions of safety climate pertinent to firefighting. Analyses revealed nine overarching themes. Competency/professionalism, physical/psychological readiness, and that positive traits sometimes produce negative consequences were themes at the individual level; cohesion and supervisor leadership/support at the workgroup level; and politics/bureaucracy, resources, leadership, and hiring/promotion at the organizational level. A multi-level perspective seems appropriate for examining safety climate in firefighting. Safety climate in firefighting appears to be multi-dimensional and some dimensions prominent in the general safety climate literature also seem relevant to firefighting. These results also suggest that the fire service may be undergoing transitions encompassing mission, personnel, and its fundamental approach to safety and risk. These results help point the way to the development of safety climate measures specific to firefighting and to interventions for improving safety performance. Copyright © 2017 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparing safety climate for nurses working in operating theatres, critical care and ward areas in the UK: a mixed methods study

PubMed Central

Tarling, Maggie; Jones, Anne; Murrells, Trevor; McCutcheon, Helen

2017-01-01

Objectives The main aim of the study was to explore the potential sources of variation and understand the meaning of safety climate for nursing practice in acute hospital settings in the UK. Design A sequential mixed methods design included a cross-sectional survey using the Safety Climate Questionnaire (SCQ) and thematic analysis of focus group discussions. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to validate the factor structure of the SCQ. Factor scores were compared between nurses working in operating theatres, critical care and ward areas. Results from the survey and the thematic analysis were then compared and synthesised. Setting A London University. Participants 319 registered nurses working in acute hospital settings completed the SCQ and a further 23 nurses participated in focus groups. Results CFA indicated that there was a good model fit on some criteria (χ2=1683.699, df=824, p<0.001; χ2/df=2.04; root mean square error of approximation=0.058) but a less acceptable fit on comparative fit index which is 0.804. There was a statistically significant difference between clinical specialisms in management commitment (F (4,266)=4.66, p=0.001). Nurses working in operating theatres had lower scores compared with ward areas and they also reported negative perceptions about management in their focus group. There was significant variation in scores for communication across clinical specialism (F (4,266)=2.62, p=0.035) but none of the pairwise comparisons achieved statistical significance. Thematic analysis identified themes of human factors, clinical management and protecting patients. The system and the human side of caring was identified as a meta-theme. Conclusions The results suggest that the SCQ has some utility but requires further exploration. The findings indicate that safety in nursing practice is a complex interaction between safety systems and the social and interpersonal aspects of clinical practice. PMID:29084793

Measuring safety culture in the ambulatory setting: the safety attitudes questionnaire--ambulatory version.

PubMed

Modak, Isitri; Sexton, J Bryan; Lux, Thomas R; Helmreich, Robert L; Thomas, Eric J

2007-01-01

Provider attitudes about issues pertinent to patient safety may be related to errors and adverse events. We know of no instruments that measure safety-related attitudes in the outpatient setting. To adapt the safety attitudes questionnaire (SAQ) to the outpatient setting and compare attitudes among different types of providers in the outpatient setting. We modified the SAQ to create a 62-item SAQ-ambulatory version (SAQ-A). Patient care staff in a multispecialty, academic practice rated their agreement with the items using a 5-point Likert scale. Cronbach's alpha was calculated to determine reliability of scale scores. Differences in SAQ-A scores between providers were assessed using ANOVA. Of the 409 staff, 282 (69%) returned surveys. One hundred ninety (46%) surveys were included in the analyses. Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.68 to 0.86 for the scales: teamwork climate, safety climate, perceptions of management, job satisfaction, working conditions, and stress recognition. Physicians had the least favorable attitudes about perceptions of management while managers had the most favorable attitudes (mean scores: 50.4 +/- 22.5 vs 72.5 +/- 19.6, P < 0.05; percent with positive attitudes 18% vs 70%, respectively). Nurses had the most positive stress recognition scores (mean score 66.0 +/- 24.0). All providers had similar attitudes toward teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, and working conditions. The SAQ-A is a reliable tool for eliciting provider attitudes about the ambulatory work setting. Attitudes relevant to medical error may differ among provider types and reflect behavior and clinic operations that could be improved.

EMS providers' perceptions of safety climate and adherence to safe work practices.

PubMed

Eliseo, Laura J; Murray, Kate A; White, Laura F; Dyer, Sophia; Mitchell, Patricia A; Fernandez, William G

2012-01-01

Occupational injuries are an important source of morbidity for emergency medical services (EMS) providers. Previous work has shown that employee perceptions of an organization's commitment to safety (i.e., safety climate) correlate with adherence to safe practices. To assess the association between perceived safety climate and compliance with safety procedures in an urban EMS system with >100,000 calls/year. EMS providers were issued a self-administered survey that included questions on demographics, years of experience, perceived safety climate, and adherence to safety procedures. Safety climate was assessed with a 20-item validated instrument. Adherence to safety procedures was assessed with a nine-item list of safety behaviors. Strict adherence to safety procedures was defined as endorsing "agree" or "strongly agree" on 80% of items. The effect of safety climate on compliance with safe practices was estimated using multiple logistic regression. One hundred ninety-six of 221 providers (89%) completed surveys; 74% were male; the median age was 36-40 years; and the median amount of experience was 8 years. One hundred twenty-seven of 196 respondents (65%) reported strict adherence to safe work practice. Factor analysis confirmed the original six-factor grouping of questions; frequent safety-related feedback/training was significantly associated with safe practices (odds ratio [OR] = 2.14, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01-4.51). EMS workers perceiving a high degree of perceived safety climate was associated with twofold greater odds of self-reported level of strict adherence to safe work practices. Frequent safety-related feedback/training was the one dimension of safety climate that had the strongest association with adherence to safe workplace behaviors.

The mediating role of integration of safety by activity versus operator between organizational culture and safety climate.

PubMed

Auzoult, Laurent; Gangloff, Bernard

2018-04-20

In this study, we analyse the impact of the organizational culture and introduce a new variable, the integration of safety, which relates to the modalities for the implementation and adoption of safety in the work process, either through the activity or by the operator. One hundred and eighty employees replied to a questionnaire measuring the organizational climate, the safety climate and the integration of safety. We expected that implementation centred on the activity or on the operator would mediate the relationship between the organizational culture and the safety climate. The results support our assumptions. A regression analysis highlights the positive impact on the safety climate of organizational values of the 'rule' and 'support' type, as well as of integration by the operator and activity. Moreover, integration mediates the relation between these variables. The results suggest to take into account organizational culture and to introduce different implementation modalities to improve the safety climate.

Validation of the group nuclear safety climate questionnaire.

PubMed

Navarro, M Felisa Latorre; Gracia Lerín, Francisco J; Tomás, Inés; Peiró Silla, José María

2013-09-01

Group safety climate is a leading indicator of safety performance in high reliability organizations. Zohar and Luria (2005) developed a Group Safety Climate scale (ZGSC) and found it to have a single factor. The ZGSC scale was used as a basis in this study with the researchers rewording almost half of the items on this scale, changing the referents from the leader to the group, and trying to validate a two-factor scale. The sample was composed of 566 employees in 50 groups from a Spanish nuclear power plant. Item analysis, reliability, correlations, aggregation indexes and CFA were performed. Results revealed that the construct was shared by each unit, and our reworded Group Safety Climate (GSC) scale showed a one-factor structure and correlated to organizational safety climate, formalized procedures, safety behavior, and time pressure. This validation of the one-factor structure of the Zohar and Luria (2005) scale could strengthen and spread this scale and measure group safety climate more effectively. Copyright © 2013 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A multilevel examination of affective job insecurity climate on safety outcomes.

PubMed

Jiang, Lixin; Probst, Tahira M

2016-07-01

Previous research has established a causal link between individual perceptions of job insecurity and safety outcomes. However, whether job insecurity climate is associated with safety outcomes has not been studied. The purpose of the current study was to explore the main and cross-level interaction effects of affective job insecurity climate on safety outcomes, including behavioral safety compliance, reporting attitudes, workplace injuries, experienced safety events, unreported safety events, and accident underreporting, beyond individual affective job insecurity. With 171 employees nested in 40 workgroups, multilevel analyses revealed that the negative impacts of individual affective job insecurity on safety outcomes are exacerbated when they occur in a climate of high affective job insecurity. These results are interpreted in light of safety management efforts and suggest that efforts to create a secure climate within one's workgroup may reap safety-related benefits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Effect of STOP technique on safety climate in a construction company.

PubMed

Darvishi, Ebrahim; Maleki, Afshin; Dehestaniathar, Saeed; Ebrahemzadih, Mehrzad

2015-01-01

Safety programs are a core part of safety management in workplaces that can reduce incidents and injuries. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of Safety Training Observation Program (STOP) technique as a behavior modification program on safety climate in a construction company. This cross-sectional study was carried out on workers of the Petrochemical Construction Company, western Iran. In order to improve safety climate, an unsafe behavior modification program entitled STOP was launched among workers of project during 12 months from April 2013 and April 2014. The STOP technique effectiveness in creating a positive safety climate was evaluated using the Safety Climate Assessment Toolkit. 76.78% of total behaviors were unsafe. 54.76% of total unsafe acts/ at-risk behaviors were related to the fall hazard. The most cause of unsafe behaviors was associated with habit and unavailability of safety equipment. After 12 month of continuous implementation the STOP technique, 55.8% of unsafe behaviors reduced among workers. The average score of safety climate evaluated using of the Toolkit, before and after the implementation of the STOP technique was 5.77 and 7.24, respectively. The STOP technique can be considered as effective approach for eliminating at-risk behavior, reinforcing safe work practices, and creating a positive safety climate in order to reduction incidents/injuries.

Beyond safety outcomes: An investigation of the impact of safety climate on job satisfaction, employee engagement and turnover using social exchange theory as the theoretical framework.

PubMed

Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Lee, Jin; McFadden, Anna C; Murphy, Lauren A; Robertson, Michelle M; Cheung, Janelle H; Zohar, Dov

2016-07-01

Safety climate, a measure of the degree to which safety is perceived by employees to be a priority in their company, is often implicated as a key factor in the promotion of injury-reducing behavior and safe work environments. Using social exchange theory as a theoretical basis, this study hypothesized that safety climate would be related to employees' job satisfaction, engagement, and turnover rate, highlighting the beneficial effects of safety climate beyond typical safety outcomes. Survey data were collected from 6207 truck drivers from two U.S. trucking companies. The objective turnover rate was collected one year after the survey data collection. Results showed that employees' safety climate perceptions were linked to employees' level of job satisfaction, engagement, and objective turnover rate, thus supporting the application of social exchange theory. Job satisfaction was also a significant mediator between safety climate and the two human resource outcomes (i.e., employee engagement and turnover rate). This study is among the first to assess the impact of safety climate beyond safety outcomes among lone workers (using truck drivers as an exemplar). Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire: psychometric properties, benchmarking data, and emerging research

PubMed Central

Sexton, John B; Helmreich, Robert L; Neilands, Torsten B; Rowan, Kathy; Vella, Keryn; Boyden, James; Roberts, Peter R; Thomas, Eric J

2006-01-01

Background There is widespread interest in measuring healthcare provider attitudes about issues relevant to patient safety (often called safety climate or safety culture). Here we report the psychometric properties, establish benchmarking data, and discuss emerging areas of research with the University of Texas Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. Methods Six cross-sectional surveys of health care providers (n = 10,843) in 203 clinical areas (including critical care units, operating rooms, inpatient settings, and ambulatory clinics) in three countries (USA, UK, New Zealand). Multilevel factor analyses yielded results at the clinical area level and the respondent nested within clinical area level. We report scale reliability, floor/ceiling effects, item factor loadings, inter-factor correlations, and percentage of respondents who agree with each item and scale. Results A six factor model of provider attitudes fit to the data at both the clinical area and respondent nested within clinical area levels. The factors were: Teamwork Climate, Safety Climate, Perceptions of Management, Job Satisfaction, Working Conditions, and Stress Recognition. Scale reliability was 0.9. Provider attitudes varied greatly both within and among organizations. Results are presented to allow benchmarking among organizations and emerging research is discussed. Conclusion The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire demonstrated good psychometric properties. Healthcare organizations can use the survey to measure caregiver attitudes about six patient safety-related domains, to compare themselves with other organizations, to prompt interventions to improve safety attitudes and to measure the effectiveness of these interventions. PMID:16584553

Patient safety climate profiles across time: Strength and level of safety climate associated with a quality improvement program in Switzerland-A cross-sectional survey study.

PubMed

Mascherek, Anna C; Schwappach, David L B

2017-01-01

Safety Climate has been acknowledged as an unspecific factor influencing patient safety. However, studies rarely provide in-depth analysis of climate data. As a helpful approach, the concept of "climate strength" has been proposed. In the present study we tested the hypotheses that even if safety climate remains stable on mean-level across time, differences might be evident in strength or shape. The data of two hospitals participating in a large national quality improvement program were analysed for differences in climate profiles at two measurement occasions. We analysed differences on mean-level, differences in percent problematic response, agreement within groups, and frequency histograms in two large hospitals in Switzerland at two measurement occasions (2013 and 2015) applying the Safety Climate Survey. In total, survey responses of 1193 individuals were included in the analyses. Overall, small but significant differences on mean-level of safety climate emerged for some subgroups. Also, although agreement was strong at both time-points within groups, tendencies of divergence or consensus were present in both hospitals. Depending on subgroup and analyses chosen, differences were more or less pronounced. The present study illustrated that taking several measures into account and describing safety climate from different perspectives is necessary in order to fully understand differences and trends within groups and to develop interventions addressing the needs of different groups more precisely.

A systematic review of the safety climate intervention literature: Past trends and future directions.

PubMed

Lee, Jin; Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Cheung, Janelle H; Chen, Zhuo; Shaw, William S

2018-04-26

Safety climate represents the meaningfulness of safety and how safety is valued in an organization. The contributions of safety climate to organizational safety have been well documented. There is a dearth of empirical research, however, on specific safety climate interventions and their effectiveness. The present study aims at examining the trend of safety climate interventions and offering compiled information for designing and implementing evidence-based safety climate interventions. Our literature search yielded 384 titles that were inspected by three examiners. Using a stepwise process that allowed for assessment of interobserver agreement, 19 full articles were selected and reviewed. Results showed that 10 out of the 19 articles (52.6%) were based on a quasi-experimental pre- and postintervention design, whereas 42.1% (n = 8) studies were based on a mixed-design approach (including both between- and within-subject design). All interventions in these 19 studies involved either safety-/health-related communication or education/training. Improvement of safety leadership was also a common component of safety climate interventions. According to the socio-technical systems classification of intervention strategies, all studies were categorized as interventions focusing on improving organizational and managerial structure as well as the personnel subsystem; four of them also aimed at improving technological aspects of work, and five of them aimed at improving the physical work subsystem. In general, a vast majority of the studies (89.5%, n = 17) showed a statistically significant improvement in safety climate across their organizations postintervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Patient safety culture in out-of-hours primary care services in the Netherlands: a cross-sectional survey.

PubMed

Smits, Marleen; Keizer, Ellen; Giesen, Paul; Deilkås, Ellen Catharina Tveter; Hofoss, Dag; Bondevik, Gunnar Tschudi

2018-03-01

To examine patient safety culture in Dutch out-of-hours primary care using the safety attitudes questionnaire (SAQ) which includes five factors: teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, perceptions of management and communication openness. Cross-sectional observational study using an anonymous web-survey. Setting Sixteen out-of-hours general practitioner (GP) cooperatives and two call centers in the Netherlands. Subjects Primary healthcare providers in out-of-hours services. Main outcome measures Mean scores on patient safety culture factors; association between patient safety culture and profession, gender, age, and working experience. Overall response rate was 43%. A total of 784 respondents were included; mainly GPs (N = 470) and triage nurses (N = 189). The healthcare providers were most positive about teamwork climate and job satisfaction, and less about communication openness and safety climate. The largest variation between clinics was found on safety climate; the lowest on teamwork climate. Triage nurses scored significantly higher than GPs on each of the five patient safety factors. Older healthcare providers scored significantly higher than younger on safety climate and perceptions of management. More working experience was positively related to higher teamwork climate and communication openness. Gender was not associated with any of the patient safety factors. Our study showed that healthcare providers perceive patient safety culture in Dutch GP cooperatives positively, but there are differences related to the respondents' profession, age and working experience. Recommendations for future studies are to examine reasons for these differences, to examine the effects of interventions to improve safety culture and to make international comparisons of safety culture. Key Points Creating a positive patient safety culture is assumed to be a prerequisite for quality and safety. We found that: • healthcare providers in Dutch GP cooperatives perceive patient safety culture positively; • triage nurses scored higher than GPs, and older and more experienced healthcare professionals scored higher than younger and less experienced professionals - on several patient safety culture factors; and • within the GP cooperatives, safety climate and openness of communication had the largest potential for improvement.

Patient safety culture in out-of-hours primary care services in the Netherlands: a cross-sectional survey

PubMed Central

Smits, Marleen; Keizer, Ellen; Giesen, Paul; Deilkås, Ellen Catharina Tveter; Hofoss, Dag; Bondevik, Gunnar Tschudi

2018-01-01

Objective To examine patient safety culture in Dutch out-of-hours primary care using the safety attitudes questionnaire (SAQ) which includes five factors: teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, perceptions of management and communication openness. Design Cross-sectional observational study using an anonymous web-survey. Setting Sixteen out-of-hours general practitioner (GP) cooperatives and two call centers in the Netherlands. Subjects Primary healthcare providers in out-of-hours services. Main outcome measures Mean scores on patient safety culture factors; association between patient safety culture and profession, gender, age, and working experience. Results Overall response rate was 43%. A total of 784 respondents were included; mainly GPs (N = 470) and triage nurses (N = 189). The healthcare providers were most positive about teamwork climate and job satisfaction, and less about communication openness and safety climate. The largest variation between clinics was found on safety climate; the lowest on teamwork climate. Triage nurses scored significantly higher than GPs on each of the five patient safety factors. Older healthcare providers scored significantly higher than younger on safety climate and perceptions of management. More working experience was positively related to higher teamwork climate and communication openness. Gender was not associated with any of the patient safety factors. Conclusions Our study showed that healthcare providers perceive patient safety culture in Dutch GP cooperatives positively, but there are differences related to the respondents’ profession, age and working experience. Recommendations for future studies are to examine reasons for these differences, to examine the effects of interventions to improve safety culture and to make international comparisons of safety culture. Key Points Creating a positive patient safety culture is assumed to be a prerequisite for quality and safety. We found that: • healthcare providers in Dutch GP cooperatives perceive patient safety culture positively; • triage nurses scored higher than GPs, and older and more experienced healthcare professionals scored higher than younger and less experienced professionals – on several patient safety culture factors; and • within the GP cooperatives, safety climate and openness of communication had the largest potential for improvement. PMID:29334826

Relationships between psychological safety climate facets and safety behavior in the rail industry: a dominance analysis.

PubMed

Morrow, Stephanie L; McGonagle, Alyssa K; Dove-Steinkamp, Megan L; Walker, Curtis T; Marmet, Matthew; Barnes-Farrell, Janet L

2010-09-01

The goals of this study were twofold: (1) to confirm a relationship between employee perceptions of psychological safety climate and safety behavior for a sample of workers in the rail industry and (2) to explore the relative strengths of relationships between specific facets of safety climate and safety behavior. Non-management rail maintenance workers employed by a large North American railroad completed a survey (n=421) regarding workplace safety perceptions and behaviors. Three facets of safety climate (management safety, coworker safety, and work-safety tension) were assessed as relating to individual workers' reported safety behavior. All three facets were significantly associated with safety behavior. Dominance analysis was used to assess the relative importance of each facet as related to the outcome, and work-safety tension evidenced the strongest relationship with safety behavior. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire as a Tool for Benchmarking Safety Culture in the NICU

PubMed Central

Profit, Jochen; Etchegaray, Jason; Petersen, Laura A; Sexton, J Bryan; Hysong, Sylvia J; Mei, Minghua; Thomas, Eric J

2014-01-01

background NICU safety culture, as measured by the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ), varies widely. Associations with clinical outcomes in the adult ICU setting make the SAQ an attractive tool for comparing clinical performance between hospitals. Little information is available on the use of the SAQ for this purpose in the NICU setting. objectives To determine whether the dimensions of safety culture measured by the SAQ give consistent results when used as a NICU performance measure. methods Cross-sectional survey of caregivers in twelve NICUs, using the six scales of the SAQ: teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, stress recognition, perceptions of management, and working conditions. NICUs were ranked by quantifying their contribution to overall risk-adjusted variation across the scales. Spearman Rank Correlation coefficients were used to test for consistency in scale performance. We then examined whether performance in the top four NICUs in one scale predicted top four performance in others. results There were 547 respondents in twelve NICUs. Of fifteen NICU-level correlations in performance ranking, two were greater than 0.7, seven were between 0.4 and 0.69, the six remaining were less than 0.4. We found a trend towards significance in comparing the distribution of performance in the top four NICUs across domains with a binomial distribution p = .051, indicating generally consistent performance across dimensions of safety culture. conclusion A culture of safety permeates many aspects of patient care and organizational functioning. The SAQ may be a useful tool for comparative performance assessments among NICUs. PMID:22337935

The role of leader influence tactics and safety climate in engaging employees' safety participation.

PubMed

Clarke, Sharon; Ward, Katie

2006-10-01

This study examines the effect of leader influence tactics on employee safety participation in a U.K.-based manufacturing organization, examining the role of safety climate as a mediator. Structural equation modeling showed that leader influence tactics associated with a transformational leadership style had significant relationships with safety participation that were partially mediated by the safety climate (consultation) or fully mediated by the safety climate (inspirational appeals). In addition, leader influence tactics associated with a transactional leadership style had significant relationships with safety participation: rational persuasion (partially mediated by safety climate) and coalition tactics (direct effect). Thus, leaders may encourage safety participation using a combination of influence tactics, based on rational arguments, involvement in decision making, and generating enthusiasm for safety. The influence of building trust in managers is discussed as an underlying mechanism in this relationship. Practical implications are highlighted, including the design of leadership development programs, which may be particularly suited to high-reliability organizations.

Ethnic Disparities of Perceived Safety Climate Among Construction Workers in Georgia, 2015.

PubMed

Welton, Michael; DeJoy, David; Castellanos, Maria Eugenia; Ebell, Mark; Shen, Ye; Robb, Sara

2018-06-01

Safety climate involves worker perception about the relative importance where they work and safety climate and has been shown to be a reliable predictor of safety-related outcomes. The primary objective of this study is to investigate ethnic differences in perceived safety climate among construction workers. Surveys (n = 179) that included a 10-item safety climate scale were administered in Athens, Georgia (GA), at local construction sites and home improvement stores during June-August, 2015. The majority of respondents were carpenters or roofers (39%), followed by laborers (22%), painters and dry wall workers (14%), other skilled trades (14%), and supervisors (11%); 32% were Hispanic. Hispanic ethnicity (p < 0.0001), drinking two or more alcoholic beverages per day (p < 0.0001), working for a company that does not provide health insurance (p = 0.0022), and working for a company with fewer than ten employees (p < 0.0001) were significantly associated with lower perceived safety climate scores. The lower perceived safety climate scores among Hispanic workers indicate that the perception of the importance of safety on the job site is lower among Hispanics construction workers than non-Hispanics construction workers.

Cross-validation of an employee safety climate model in Malaysia.

PubMed

Bahari, Siti Fatimah; Clarke, Sharon

2013-06-01

Whilst substantial research has investigated the nature of safety climate, and its importance as a leading indicator of organisational safety, much of this research has been conducted with Western industrial samples. The current study focuses on the cross-validation of a safety climate model in the non-Western industrial context of Malaysian manufacturing. The first-order factorial validity of Cheyne et al.'s (1998) [Cheyne, A., Cox, S., Oliver, A., Tomas, J.M., 1998. Modelling safety climate in the prediction of levels of safety activity. Work and Stress, 12(3), 255-271] model was tested, using confirmatory factor analysis, in a Malaysian sample. Results showed that the model fit indices were below accepted levels, indicating that the original Cheyne et al. (1998) safety climate model was not supported. An alternative three-factor model was developed using exploratory factor analysis. Although these findings are not consistent with previously reported cross-validation studies, we argue that previous studies have focused on validation across Western samples, and that the current study demonstrates the need to take account of cultural factors in the development of safety climate models intended for use in non-Western contexts. The results have important implications for the transferability of existing safety climate models across cultures (for example, in global organisations) and highlight the need for future research to examine cross-cultural issues in relation to safety climate. Copyright © 2013 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An assessment of safety climate, job satisfaction and turnover intention relationships using a national sample of workers from the USA.

PubMed

Smith, Todd D

2018-03-01

The association between safety climate, job satisfaction and turnover intention has not been thoroughly researched. This research is needed so that safety researchers and practitioners can begin to delineate the impact of safety on organizational and business outcomes. A path analysis was completed using data from a national sample of workers from the USA (n = 1525). The overall fit of the model was excellent and analyses determined that both training and resource adequacy positively affected safety climate and job satisfaction. Safety climate also positively influenced job satisfaction. Both safety climate and job satisfaction were negatively associated with respondents' turnover intention. In the study, the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intention is reiterated in a sample of workers across many industries. This study is novel because it is one of the first studies to confirm that turnover intention is reduced with increased safety climate in a diverse sample of workers.

Development and initial validation of an Aviation Safety Climate Scale.

PubMed

Evans, Bronwyn; Glendon, A Ian; Creed, Peter A

2007-01-01

A need was identified for a consistent set of safety climate factors to provide a basis for aviation industry benchmarking. Six broad safety climate themes were identified from the literature and consultations with industry safety experts. Items representing each of the themes were prepared and administered to 940 Australian commercial pilots. Data from half of the sample (N=468) were used in an exploratory factor analysis that produced a 3-factor model of Management commitment and communication, Safety training and equipment, and Maintenance. A confirmatory factor analysis on the remaining half of the sample showed the 3-factor model to be an adequate fit to the data. The results of this study have produced a scale of safety climate for aviation that is both reliable and valid. This study developed a tool to assess the level of perceived safety climate, specifically of pilots, but may also, with minor modifications, be used to assess other groups' perceptions of safety climate.

Organizational culture and climate for patient safety in Intensive Care Units.

PubMed

Santiago, Thaiana Helena Roma; Turrini, Ruth Natalia Teresa

2015-02-01

Objective To assess the perception of health professionals about patient safety climate and culture in different intensive care units (ICUs) and the relationship between scores obtained on the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC) and the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). Method A cross-sectional study conducted at a teaching hospital in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, in March and April 2014. As data gathering instruments, the HSOPSC, SAQ and a questionnaire with sociodemographic and professional information about the staff working in an adult, pediatric and neonatal ICU were used. Data analysis was conducted with descriptive statistics. Results The scales presented good reliability. Greater weaknesses in patient safety were observed in the Working conditions andPerceptions of management domains of the SAQ and in the Nonpunitive response to error domain of the HSOPSC. The strengths indicated by the SAQ wereTeamwork climate and Job satisfactionand by the HSOPC, Supervisor/manager expectations and actions promoting safety and Organizational learning-continuous improvement. Job satisfaction was higher among neonatal ICU workers when compared with the other ICUs. The adult ICU presented lower scores for most of the SAQ and HSOPSC domains. The scales presented moderate correlation between them (r=0.66). Conclusion There were differences in perception regarding patient safety among ICUs, which corroborates the existence of local microcultures. The study did not demonstrate equivalence between the SAQ and the HSOPSC.

Leadership, safety climate, and continuous quality improvement: impact on process quality and patient safety.

PubMed

McFadden, Kathleen L; Stock, Gregory N; Gowen, Charles R

2014-10-01

Successful amelioration of medical errors represents a significant problem in the health care industry. There is a need for greater understanding of the factors that lead to improved process quality and patient safety outcomes in hospitals. We present a research model that shows how transformational leadership, safety climate, and continuous quality improvement (CQI) initiatives are related to objective quality and patient safety outcome measures. The proposed framework is tested using structural equation modeling, based on data collected for 204 hospitals, and supplemented with objective outcome data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The results provide empirical evidence that a safety climate, which is connected to the chief executive officer's transformational leadership style, is related to CQI initiatives, which are linked to improved process quality. A unique finding of this study is that, although CQI initiatives are positively associated with improved process quality, they are also associated with higher hospital-acquired condition rates, a measure of patient safety. Likewise, safety climate is directly related to improved patient safety outcomes. The notion that patient safety climate and CQI initiatives are not interchangeable or universally beneficial is an important contribution to the literature. The results confirm the importance of using CQI to effectively enhance process quality in hospitals, and patient safety climate to improve patient safety outcomes. The overall pattern of findings suggests that simultaneous implementation of CQI initiatives and patient safety climate produces greater combined benefits.

Leadership, safety climate, and continuous quality improvement: impact on process quality and patient safety.

PubMed

McFadden, Kathleen L; Stock, Gregory N; Gowen, Charles R

2015-01-01

Successful amelioration of medical errors represents a significant problem in the health care industry. There is a need for greater understanding of the factors that lead to improved process quality and patient safety outcomes in hospitals. We present a research model that shows how transformational leadership, safety climate, and continuous quality improvement (CQI) initiatives are related to objective quality and patient safety outcome measures. The proposed framework is tested using structural equation modeling, based on data collected for 204 hospitals, and supplemented with objective outcome data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The results provide empirical evidence that a safety climate, which is connected to the chief executive officer's transformational leadership style, is related to CQI initiatives, which are linked to improved process quality. A unique finding of this study is that, although CQI initiatives are positively associated with improved process quality, they are also associated with higher hospital-acquired condition rates, a measure of patient safety. Likewise, safety climate is directly related to improved patient safety outcomes. The notion that patient safety climate and CQI initiatives are not interchangeable or universally beneficial is an important contribution to the literature. The results confirm the importance of using CQI to effectively enhance process quality in hospitals, and patient safety climate to improve patient safety outcomes. The overall pattern of findings suggests that simultaneous implementation of CQI initiatives and patient safety climate produces greater combined benefits.

Does safety climate moderate the influence of staffing adequacy and work conditions on nurse injuries?

PubMed

Mark, Barbara A; Hughes, Linda C; Belyea, Michael; Chang, Yunkyung; Hofmann, David; Jones, Cheryl B; Bacon, Cynthia T

2007-01-01

Hospital nurses have one of the highest work-related injury rates in the United States. Yet, approaches to improving employee safety have generally focused on attempts to modify individual behavior through enforced compliance with safety rules and mandatory participation in safety training. We examined a theoretical model that investigated the impact on nurse injuries (back injuries and needlesticks) of critical structural variables (staffing adequacy, work engagement, and work conditions) and further tested whether safety climate moderated these effects. A longitudinal, non-experimental, organizational study, conducted in 281 medical-surgical units in 143 general acute care hospitals in the United States. Work engagement and work conditions were positively related to safety climate, but not directly to nurse back injuries or needlesticks. Safety climate moderated the relationship between work engagement and needlesticks, while safety climate moderated the effect of work conditions on both needlesticks and back injuries, although in unexpected ways. DISCUSSION AND IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: Our findings suggest that positive work engagement and work conditions contribute to enhanced safety climate and can reduce nurse injuries.

Development and Validation of a Safety Climate Scale for Manufacturing Industry

PubMed Central

Ghahramani, Abolfazl; Khalkhali, Hamid R.

2015-01-01

Background This paper describes the development of a scale for measuring safety climate. Methods This study was conducted in six manufacturing companies in Iran. The scale developed through conducting a literature review about the safety climate and constructing a question pool. The number of items was reduced to 71 after performing a screening process. Results The result of content validity analysis showed that 59 items had excellent item content validity index (≥ 0.78) and content validity ratio (> 0.38). The exploratory factor analysis resulted in eight safety climate dimensions. The reliability value for the final 45-item scale was 0.96. The result of confirmatory factor analysis showed that the safety climate model is satisfactory. Conclusion This study produced a valid and reliable scale for measuring safety climate in manufacturing companies. PMID:26106508

Achieving a climate for patient safety by focusing on relationships.

PubMed

Manojlovich, Milisa; Kerr, Mickey; Davies, Barbara; Squires, Janet; Mallick, Ranjeeta; Rodger, Ginette L

2014-12-01

Despite many initiatives, advances in patient safety remain uneven in part because poor relationships among health professionals have not been addressed. The purpose of this study was to determine whether relationships between health professionals contributed to a patient safety climate, after implementation of an intervention to improve inter-professional collaboration. This was a secondary analysis of data collected to evaluate the Interprofessional Model of Patient Care (IPMPC) at The Ottawa Hospital in Ontario, Canada, which consists of five sites. A series of generalized estimating equation models were generated, accounting for the clustering of responses by site. Thirteen health professionals including physicians, nurses, physiotherapists and others (n = 1896) completed anonymous surveys about 1 year after the IPMPC was introduced. The IPMPC was implemented to improve interdisciplinary collaboration. Reliable instruments were used to measure collaboration, respect, inter-professional conflict and patient safety climate. Collaboration (β = 0.13; P = 0.002) and respect (β = 1.07; P = 0.03) were significant independent predictors of patient safety climate. Conflict was an independent and significant inverse predictor of patient safety climate (β = -0.29; P = 0.03), but did not moderate linkages between collaboration and patient safety climate or between respect and patient safety climate. Through the IPMPC, all health professionals learned how to collaborate and build a patient safety climate, even in the presence of inter-professional conflict. Efforts by others to foster better work relationships may yield similar improvements in patient safety climate. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care; all rights reserved.

Exploring Typical and Atypical Safety Climate Perceptions of Practitioners in the Repair, Maintenance, Minor Alteration and Addition (RMAA) Sector in Hong Kong.

PubMed

Hon, Carol K H; Liu, Yulin

2016-09-22

The safety of repair, maintenance, minor alteration and addition (RMAA) work is an under-explored area. This study explored the typical and atypical safety climate perceptions of practitioners in the RMAA sector in Hong Kong, based on a self-administered questionnaire survey of 662 local practitioners in the industry. Profile analysis, via multidimensional scaling of the respondents' scores of three safety climate scales, identified one typical perception: high in management commitment to occupational health and safety (OHS) and employee involvement, low in applicability for safety rules and regulations, and low in responsibility for OHS. The respondents were clustered into typical and atypical perception groups according to their safety climate scores' match to the typical perception. A comparison of demographics between the two groups with logistic regression found that work level and direct employer significantly affect their classification. A multivariate analysis of variance of safety performance measures between the two groups indicated that the typical group had a significantly higher level of safety compliance than the atypical group, with no significant difference in safety participation or injury. The significance of this study lies in revealing the typical safety climate perception profile pattern of RMAA works and offering a new perspective of safety climate research.

Exploring Typical and Atypical Safety Climate Perceptions of Practitioners in the Repair, Maintenance, Minor Alteration and Addition (RMAA) Sector in Hong Kong

PubMed Central

Hon, Carol K.H.; Liu, Yulin

2016-01-01

The safety of repair, maintenance, minor alteration and addition (RMAA) work is an under-explored area. This study explored the typical and atypical safety climate perceptions of practitioners in the RMAA sector in Hong Kong, based on a self-administered questionnaire survey of 662 local practitioners in the industry. Profile analysis, via multidimensional scaling of the respondents’ scores of three safety climate scales, identified one typical perception: high in management commitment to occupational health and safety (OHS) and employee involvement, low in applicability for safety rules and regulations, and low in responsibility for OHS. The respondents were clustered into typical and atypical perception groups according to their safety climate scores’ match to the typical perception. A comparison of demographics between the two groups with logistic regression found that work level and direct employer significantly affect their classification. A multivariate analysis of variance of safety performance measures between the two groups indicated that the typical group had a significantly higher level of safety compliance than the atypical group, with no significant difference in safety participation or injury. The significance of this study lies in revealing the typical safety climate perception profile pattern of RMAA works and offering a new perspective of safety climate research. PMID:27669269

Patient safety climate profiles across time: Strength and level of safety climate associated with a quality improvement program in Switzerland—A cross-sectional survey study

PubMed Central

Mascherek, Anna C.

2017-01-01

Safety Climate has been acknowledged as an unspecific factor influencing patient safety. However, studies rarely provide in-depth analysis of climate data. As a helpful approach, the concept of “climate strength” has been proposed. In the present study we tested the hypotheses that even if safety climate remains stable on mean-level across time, differences might be evident in strength or shape. The data of two hospitals participating in a large national quality improvement program were analysed for differences in climate profiles at two measurement occasions. We analysed differences on mean-level, differences in percent problematic response, agreement within groups, and frequency histograms in two large hospitals in Switzerland at two measurement occasions (2013 and 2015) applying the Safety Climate Survey. In total, survey responses of 1193 individuals were included in the analyses. Overall, small but significant differences on mean-level of safety climate emerged for some subgroups. Also, although agreement was strong at both time-points within groups, tendencies of divergence or consensus were present in both hospitals. Depending on subgroup and analyses chosen, differences were more or less pronounced. The present study illustrated that taking several measures into account and describing safety climate from different perspectives is necessary in order to fully understand differences and trends within groups and to develop interventions addressing the needs of different groups more precisely. PMID:28753633

External validity of a generic safety climate scale for lone workers across different industries and companies.

PubMed

Lee, Jin; Huang, Yueng-hsiang; Robertson, Michelle M; Murphy, Lauren A; Garabet, Angela; Chang, Wen-Ruey

2014-02-01

The goal of this study was to examine the external validity of a 12-item generic safety climate scale for lone workers in order to evaluate the appropriateness of generalized use of the scale in the measurement of safety climate across various lone work settings. External validity evidence was established by investigating the measurement equivalence (ME) across different industries and companies. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)-based and item response theory (IRT)-based perspectives were adopted to examine the ME of the generic safety climate scale for lone workers across 11 companies from the trucking, electrical utility, and cable television industries. Fairly strong evidence of ME was observed for both organization- and group-level generic safety climate sub-scales. Although significant invariance was observed in the item intercepts across the different lone work settings, absolute model fit indices remained satisfactory in the most robust step of CFA-based ME testing. IRT-based ME testing identified only one differentially functioning item from the organization-level generic safety climate sub-scale, but its impact was minimal and strong ME was supported. The generic safety climate scale for lone workers reported good external validity and supported the presence of a common feature of safety climate among lone workers. The scale can be used as an effective safety evaluation tool in various lone work situations. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multilevel Safety Climate and Safety Performance in the Construction Industry: Development and Validation of a Top-Down Mechanism

PubMed Central

Gao, Ran; Chan, Albert P.C.; Utama, Wahyudi P.; Zahoor, Hafiz

2016-01-01

The character of construction projects exposes front-line workers to dangers and accidents. Safety climate has been confirmed to be a predictor of safety performance in the construction industry. This study aims to explore the underlying mechanisms of the relationship between multilevel safety climate and safety performance. An integrated model was developed to study how particular safety climate factors of one level affect those of other levels, and then affect safety performance from the top down. A questionnaire survey was administered on six construction sites in Vietnam. A total of 1030 valid questionnaires were collected from this survey. Approximately half of the data were used to conduct exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and the remaining data were submitted to structural equation modeling (SEM). Top management commitment (TMC) and supervisors’ expectation (SE) were identified as factors to represent organizational safety climate (OSC) and supervisor safety climate (SSC), respectively, and coworkers’ caring and communication (CCC) and coworkers’ role models (CRM) were identified as factors to denote coworker safety climate (CSC). SEM results show that OSC factor is positively related to SSC factor and CSC factors significantly. SSC factor could partially mediate the relationship between OSC factor and CSC factors, as well as the relationship between OSC factor and safety performance. CSC factors partially mediate the relationship between OSC factor and safety performance, and the relationship between SSC factor and safety performance. The findings imply that a positive safety culture should be established both at the organizational level and the group level. Efforts from all top management, supervisors, and coworkers should be provided to improve safety performance in the construction industry. PMID:27834823

Multilevel Safety Climate and Safety Performance in the Construction Industry: Development and Validation of a Top-Down Mechanism.

PubMed

Gao, Ran; Chan, Albert P C; Utama, Wahyudi P; Zahoor, Hafiz

2016-11-08

The character of construction projects exposes front-line workers to dangers and accidents. Safety climate has been confirmed to be a predictor of safety performance in the construction industry. This study aims to explore the underlying mechanisms of the relationship between multilevel safety climate and safety performance. An integrated model was developed to study how particular safety climate factors of one level affect those of other levels, and then affect safety performance from the top down. A questionnaire survey was administered on six construction sites in Vietnam. A total of 1030 valid questionnaires were collected from this survey. Approximately half of the data were used to conduct exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and the remaining data were submitted to structural equation modeling (SEM). Top management commitment (TMC) and supervisors' expectation (SE) were identified as factors to represent organizational safety climate (OSC) and supervisor safety climate (SSC), respectively, and coworkers' caring and communication (CCC) and coworkers' role models (CRM) were identified as factors to denote coworker safety climate (CSC). SEM results show that OSC factor is positively related to SSC factor and CSC factors significantly. SSC factor could partially mediate the relationship between OSC factor and CSC factors, as well as the relationship between OSC factor and safety performance. CSC factors partially mediate the relationship between OSC factor and safety performance, and the relationship between SSC factor and safety performance. The findings imply that a positive safety culture should be established both at the organizational level and the group level. Efforts from all top management, supervisors, and coworkers should be provided to improve safety performance in the construction industry.

Measuring safety climate in elderly homes.

PubMed

Yeung, Koon-Chuen; Chan, Charles C

2012-02-01

Provision of a valid and reliable safety climate dimension brings enormous benefits to the elderly home sector. The aim of the present study was to make use of the safety climate instrument developed by OSHC to measure the safety perceptions of employees in elderly homes such that the factor structure of the safety climate dimensions of elderly homes could be explored. In 2010, surveys by mustering on site method were administered in 27 elderly homes that had participated in the "Hong Kong Safe and Healthy Residential Care Home Accreditation Scheme" organized by the Occupational Safety and Health Council. Six hundred and fifty-one surveys were returned with a response rate of 54.3%. To examine the factor structure of safety climate dimensions in our study, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using principal components analysis method was conducted to identify the underlying factors. The results of the modified seven-factor's safety climate structure extracted from 35 items better reflected the safety climate dimensions of elderly homes. The Cronbach alpha range for this study (0.655 to 0.851) indicated good internal consistency among the seven-factor structure. Responses from managerial level, supervisory and professional level, and front-line staff were analyzed to come up with the suggestion on effective ways of improving the safety culture of elderly homes. The overall results showed that managers generally gave positive responses in the factors evaluated, such as "management commitment and concern to safety," "perception of work risks and some contributory influences," "safety communication and awareness," and "safe working attitude and participation." Supervisors / professionals, and frontline level staff on the other hand, have less positive responses. The result of the lowest score in the factors - "perception of safety rules and procedures" underlined the importance of the relevance and practicability of safety rules and procedures. The modified OSHC safety climate tool provided better evidence of structural validity and reliability for use by elderly homes' decision makers as an indicator of employee perception of safety in their institution. The findings and suggestions in the study provide useful information for the management, supervisors/professionals and frontline level staff to cultivate the safety culture in the elderly home sector. Most important, elderly homes can use the modified safety climate scale to identify problem areas in their safety culture and safety management practices and then target these for intervention. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[The role of safety climate and the relationship with job satisfaction: an exploratory study across three different occupational contexts.

PubMed

Emanuel, Federica; Colombo, Lara; Cortese, Claudio G; Ghislieri, Chiara

2017-12-01

This study examined the role of the "safety climate", or the organization's attention to health and safety of workers, and of job demand and resources in relation with job satisfaction. Wellbeing at work is a topic of growing interest, in line with the legislation and the programs on health and safety of workers and management and the evaluation of psychosocial risks. Several studies show that organizational actions concerning health and safety can be an indicator of the attention to employees' wellbeing, even if studies about the relationship between safety climate and some psychosocial outcomes are scant. The study analysed the relationship between job demand, job resources, safety climate and job satisfaction in three different occupational contexts (public authority, N = 224; social care organization, N = 115; pharmaceutical company, N = 127); workers were divided into groups based on the risk level appeared in the objective assessment of work-related stress, in order to identify differences. The self-report questionnaire gathered information about: job satisfaction, work efforts, supervisors' support, colleagues support, safety climate (α between .72 and .93). Data analysis provided: Cronbach α, analysis of variance, correlations, stepwise multiple regressions. The results showed that job satisfaction (R2 between .23 and .88) had a negative relationship with efforts and a positive relationship with job resources and safety climate. It emerges the importance of safety climate: to support and promote wellbeing at work, organizations could endorse training and information programs on health and safety for all workers and management, not only for professional groups with high-risk level. Future studies could explore the relation between safety climate and other outcomes, such as emotional exhaustion or objective indicators of organizational health (e.g. absenteeism, accidents, etc.). Copyright© by Aracne Editrice, Roma, Italy.

Pre-surgery briefings and safety climate in the operating theatre.

PubMed

Allard, Jon; Bleakley, Alan; Hobbs, Adrian; Coombes, Lee

2011-08-01

In 2008, the WHO produced a surgical safety checklist against a background of a poor patient safety record in operating theatres. Formal team briefings are now standard practice in high-risk settings such as the aviation industry and improve safety, but are resisted in surgery. Research evidence is needed to persuade the surgical workforce to adopt safety procedures such as briefings. To investigate whether exposure to pre-surgery briefings is related to perception of safety climate. Three Safety Attitude Questionnaires, completed by operating theatre staff in 2003, 2004 and 2006, were used to evaluate the effects of an educational intervention introducing pre-surgery briefings. Individual practitioners who agree with the statement 'briefings are common in the operating theatre' also report a better 'safety climate' in operating theatres. The study reports a powerful link between briefing practices and attitudes towards safety. Findings build on previous work by reporting on the relationship between briefings and safety climate within a 4-year period. Briefings, however, remain difficult to establish in local contexts without appropriate team-based patient safety education. Success in establishing a safety culture, with associated practices, may depend on first establishing unidirectional, positive change in attitudes to create a safety climate.

Findings From the National Machine Guarding Program

PubMed Central

Parker, David L.; Yamin, Samuel; Xi, Min; Gordon, Robert; Most, Ivan; Stanley, Rod

2017-01-01

Objectives: This manuscript assesses safety climate data from the National Machine Guarding Program (NMGP)—a nationwide intervention to improve machine safety. Methods: Baseline safety climate surveys were completed by 2161 employees and 341 owners or managers at 115 businesses. A separate onsite audit of safety management practices and machine guarding equipment was conducted at each business. Results: Safety climate measures were not correlated with machine guarding or safety management practices. The presence of a safety committee was correlated with higher scores on the safety management audit when contrasted with those without one. Conclusions: The presence of a safety committee is easily assessed and provides a basis on which to make recommendations with regard to how it functions. Measures of safety climate fail to provide actionable information. Future research on small manufacturing firms should emphasize the presence of an employee-management safety committee. PMID:28930801

Underlying influence of perception of management leadership on patient safety climate in healthcare organizations - A mediation analysis approach.

PubMed

Weng, Shao-Jen; Kim, Seung-Hwan; Wu, Chieh-Liang

2017-02-01

We aim to draw insights on how medical staff's perception of management leadership affects safety climate with key safety related dimensions-teamwork climate, job satisfaction and working conditions. A cross-sectional survey using Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ) was performed in a medical center in Taichung City, Taiwan. The relationships among the dimensions in SAQ were then analyzed by structural equation modeling with a mediation analysis. 2205 physicians and nurses of the medical center participated in the survey. Because not all questions in the survey are suitable for entire hospital staff, only the valid responses (n = 1596, response rate of 72%) were extracted for analysis. Key measures are the direct and indirect effects of teamwork climate, job satisfaction, perception of management leadership, and working conditions on safety climate. Outcomes show that effect of perception of management leadership on safety climate is significant (standardized indirect effect of 0.892 with P-value 0.002) and fully mediated by other dimensions, where 66.9% is mediated through teamwork climate, 24.1% through working conditions and 9.0% through job satisfaction. Our findings point to the importance of management leadership and the mechanism of its influence on safety climate. To improve safety climate, the implication is that commitment by management on leading safety improvement needs to be demonstrated when it implements daily supportive actions for other safety dimensions. For future improvement, development of a management system that can facilitate two-way trust between management and staff over the long term is recommended. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Climate change in safety assessment of a surface disposal facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leterme, B.

2012-04-01

The Belgian Agency for Radioactive Waste and Enriched Fissile Materials (ONDRAF/NIRAS) aims to develop a surface disposal facility for LILW-SL in Dessel (North-East of Belgium). Given the time scale of interest for the safety assessment (several millennia), a number of parameters in the modelling chain near field - geosphere - biosphere may be influenced by climate change. The present study discusses how potential climate change impact was accounted for the following quantities: (i) near field infiltration through the repository earth cover, (ii) partial pressure of CO2 in the water infiltrating the cover and draining the concrete, and (iii) groundwater recharge in the vicinity of the site. For these three parameters, the impact of climate change is assessed using climatic analogue stations, i.e. stations presently under climatic conditions corresponding to a given climate state. Results indicate that : (i) Using Gijon (Spain) as representative analogue station for the next millennia, infiltration at the bottom of the soil layer towards the modules of the facility is expected to increase (from 346 to 413 mm/y) under a subtropical climate. Although no colder climate is foreseen in the next 10 000 years, the approach was also tested with analogue stations for a colder climate state. Using Sisimiut (Greenland) as representative analogue station, infiltration is expected to decrease (109 mm/y). (ii) Due to changes of the partial pressure of CO2 in the soil water, cement degradation is estimated to occur more rapidly under a warmer climate. (iii) A decrease of long-term annual average groundwater recharge by 12% was simulated using Gijon representative analogue (from 314 to 276 mm), although total rainfall was higher (947 mm) in the warmer climate compared to the current temperate climate (899 mm). For a colder climate state, groundwater recharge simulated for the representative analogue Sisimiut showed a decrease by 69% compared to current climate conditions. The advantages and weaknesses of using analogue stations are also discussed.

The role of autonomy and social support in the relation between psychosocial safety climate and stress in health care workers.

PubMed

Havermans, Bo M; Boot, Cécile R L; Houtman, Irene L D; Brouwers, Evelien P M; Anema, Johannes R; van der Beek, Allard J

2017-06-08

Health care workers are exposed to psychosocial work factors. Autonomy and social support are psychosocial work factors that are related to stress, and are argued to largely result from the psychosocial safety climate within organisations. This study aimed to assess to what extent the relation between psychosocial safety climate and stress in health care workers can be explained by autonomy and social support. In a cross-sectional study, psychosocial safety climate, stress, autonomy, co-worker support, and supervisor support were assessed using questionnaires, in a sample of health care workers (N = 277). Linear mixed models analyses were performed to assess to what extent social support and autonomy explained the relation between psychosocial safety climate and stress. A lower psychosocial safety climate score was associated with significantly higher stress (B = -0.21, 95% CI = -0.27 - -0.14). Neither co-worker support, supervisor support, nor autonomy explained the relation between psychosocial safety climate and stress. Taken together, autonomy and both social support measures diminished the relation between psychosocial safety climate and stress by 12% (full model: B = -0.18, 95% CI = -0.25 - -0.11). Autonomy and social support together seemed to bring about a small decrease in the relation between psychosocial safety climate and stress in health care workers. Future research should discern whether other psychosocial work factors explain a larger portion of this relation. This study was registered in the Netherlands National Trial Register, trial code: NTR5527 .

Non-reporting of work injuries and aspects of jobsite safety climate and behavioral-based safety elements among carpenters in Washington State.

PubMed

Lipscomb, Hester J; Schoenfisch, Ashley L; Cameron, Wilfrid

2015-04-01

Declining work injury rates may reflect safer work conditions as well as under-reporting. Union carpenters were invited to participate in a mailed, cross-sectional survey designed to capture information about injury reporting practices. Prevalence of non-reporting and fear of repercussions for reporting were compared across exposure to behavioral-based safety elements and three domains of the Nordic Safety Climate Questionnaire (NOSACQ-50). The majority (>75%) of the 1,155 participants felt they could report work-related injuries to their supervisor without fear of retribution, and most felt that the majority of injuries on their jobsites got reported. However, nearly half indicated it was best not to report minor injuries, and felt pressures to use their private insurance for work injury care. The prevalence of non-reporting and fear of reporting increased markedly with poorer measures of management safety justice (NOSACQ-50). Formal and informal policies and practices on jobsites likely influence injury reporting. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The safety climate in primary care (SAP-C) study: study protocol for a randomised controlled feasibility study.

PubMed

Lydon, Sinéad; Cupples, Margaret E; Hart, Nigel; Murphy, Andrew W; Faherty, Aileen; O'Connor, Paul

2016-01-01

Research on patient safety has focused largely on secondary care settings, and there is a dearth of knowledge relating to safety culture or climate, and safety climate improvement strategies, in the context of primary care. This is problematic given the high rates of usage of primary care services and the myriad of opportunities for clinical errors daily. The current research programme aimed to assess the effectiveness of an intervention derived from the Scottish Patient Safety Programme in Primary Care. The intervention consists of safety climate measurement and feedback and patient chart audit using the trigger review method. The purpose of this paper is to describe the background to this research and to present the methodology of this feasibility study in preparation for a future definitive RCT. The SAP-C study is a feasibility study employing a randomised controlled pretest-posttest design that will be conducted in 10 general practices in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Five practices will receive the safety climate intervention over a 9-month period. The five practices in the control group will continue care as usual but will complete the GP-SafeQuest safety climate questionnaire at baseline (month 1) and at the terminus of the intervention (month 9). The outcomes of the study include process evaluation metrics (i.e. rates of participant recruitment and retention, rates of completion of safety climate measures, qualitative data regarding participants' perceptions of the intervention's potential efficacy, acceptability, and sustainability), patient safety culture in intervention and control group practices at posttest, and instances of undetected patient harm identified through patient chart audit using the trigger review method. The planned study investigates an intervention to improve safety climate in Irish primary care settings. The resulting data may inform our knowledge of the frequency of undetected patient safety incidents in primary care, may contribute to improved patient safety practices in primary care settings, and may inform future research on patient safety improvement initiatives.

Safety perception referents of permanent and temporary employees: safety climate boundaries in the industrial workplace.

PubMed

Luria, Gil; Yagil, Dana

2010-09-01

To explore the significant referents of safety perceptions among permanent and temporary employees in order to identify the boundaries of safety climate in a heterogeneous workforce. Collection of data from semi-structured interviews with employees in manufacturing organizations, using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to identify basic safety perceptions. Independent raters used content analysis to examine the data. Analysis of the data revealed differences between safety themes at organization, group and individual levels. Themes relating to the individual were more prevalent among temporary employees, while those relating to the group and the organization prevailed among permanent employees. Permanent employees view organizational and group levels as significant referents of safety perceptions, while temporary employees focus on the individual level. The results challenge the current view of safety climate as a uniform concept for all employees and prescribe boundary conditions for safety climate. It is suggested that organizations should implement "tailor-made" safety-climate practices according to the referents of employee sub-groups. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Psychometric Support for an Abbreviated Version of the California School Climate and Safety Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rebelez, Jennica L.; Furlong, Michael J.

2013-01-01

The California School Climate and Safety Survey-Short Form (CSCSS-SF) was developed as a streamlined version (54 items) of the original CSCSS (102 items) for school safety teams to gather information regarding student perceptions of campus climate, safety, and experience of victimization. Using a longitudinal dataset, this study implemented…

Safety climate, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction among Brazilian paediatric professional nurses.

PubMed

Alves, D F S; Guirardello, E B

2016-09-01

International studies indicate that job satisfaction and burnout interfere with the safety climate and quality of care. However, no evidence of such relationships is available for Brazilian paediatric hospitals. To assess the correlation and predictive effect of emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction on the perception of professional nurses at paediatric hospitals regarding safety climate and quality of care. Cross-sectional correlational design. The study was conducted with registered nurses, technician and assistant nurses from two Brazilian paediatric hospitals over 3 months in 2013-2014 using instruments to assess safety climate, quality of care, job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion. Data related to 267 professional nurses from 15 inpatient wards and 3 intensive care units were analysed. Overall, the respondents exhibited moderate emotional exhaustion, were satisfied with their jobs and considered the quality of care as good. However, the respondents exhibited low concordance as to the positive perception of the safety climate. The variables, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction, exhibited significant correlations with safety climate and were considered predictive of the latter. Emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction among professional nurses influence the safety climate at paediatric hospitals. Investments to reduce emotional exhaustion and to improve job satisfaction among professional nurses allocated to paediatric hospitals might contribute to the patients' safety. © 2016 International Council of Nurses.

Examination of the relationship between management and clinician perception of patient safety climate and patient satisfaction.

PubMed

Mazurenko, Olena; Richter, Jason; Kazley, Abby Swanson; Ford, Eric

2017-04-25

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between managers and clinicians' agreement on deeming the patient safety climate as high or low and the patients' satisfaction with those organizations. We used two secondary data sets: the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (2012) and the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (2012). We used ordinary least squares regressions to analyze the relationship between the extent of agreement between managers and clinicians' perceptions of safety climate in relationship to patient satisfaction. The dependent variables were four Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems patient satisfaction scores: communication with nurses, communication with doctors, communication about medicines, and discharge information. The main independent variables were four groups that were formed based on the extent of managers and clinicians' agreement on four patient safety climate domains: communication openness, feedback and communication about errors, teamwork within units, and teamwork across units. After controlling for hospital and market-level characteristics, we found that patient satisfaction was significantly higher if managers and clinicians reported that patient safety climate is high or if only clinicians perceived the climate as high. Specifically, manager and clinician agreement on high levels of communication openness (β = 2.25, p = .01; β = 2.46, p = .05), feedback and communication about errors (β = 3.0, p = .001; β = 2.89, p = .01), and teamwork across units (β = 2.91, p = .001; β = 3.34, p = .01) was positively and significantly associated with patient satisfaction with discharge information and communication about medication. In addition, more favorable perceptions about patient safety climate by clinicians only yielded similar findings. Organizations should measure and examine patient safety climate from multiple perspectives and be aware that individuals may have varying opinions about safety climate. Hospitals should encourage multidisciplinary collaboration given that staff perceptions about patient safety climate may be associated with patient satisfaction.

Cooler performance breadth in a viviparous skink relative to its oviparous congener.

PubMed

Landry Yuan, Félix; Pickett, Evan J; Bonebrake, Timothy C

2016-10-01

Susceptibility of species to climate change varies depending on many biological and environmental traits, such as reproductive mode and climatic exposure. For example, wider thermal tolerance breadths are associated with more climatically variable habitats and viviparity could be associated with greater vulnerability relative to oviparity. However, few examples exist detailing how such physiological and environmental traits together might shape species thermal performance. In this study we compared the thermal tolerance and performance of two sympatric skink congeners in Hong Kong that differ in habitat use and reproductive mode. The viviparous Sphenomorphus indicus lives on the forest floor while the oviparous Sphenomorphus incognitus occupies stream edges. We quantified the thermal environments in each of these habitats to compare climatic exposure and then calculated thermal safety margins, potential daily activity times within each species' thermal optimal range, and possible climate change vulnerability. Although we did not detect any differences in thermal tolerance range or thermal environments across habitats, we found cooler performance in S. indicus relative to S. incognitus. Moreover, while optimal activity time increases for both skinks under a warming scenario, we project that the thermal safety margin of S. indicus would narrow to nearly zero, thus losing its buffering capacity to potential extreme climate events in the future. This research is thus consistent with recent studies emphasizing the vulnerability of viviparous reptiles to a warming climate. The results together furthermore highlight the complexity in how environmental and physiological traits at multiple spatial scales structure climate change vulnerability of ectothermic species. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Why do workers behave unsafely at work? Determinants of safe work practices in industrial workers.

PubMed

Garcia, A M; Boix, P; Canosa, C

2004-03-01

To explore the relation between safety climate (workers' perceptions regarding management's attitudes towards occupational safety and health) and workers' behaviour at work. Cross sectional survey of workers at the pottery industry in Castellon, Spain. Sampling was stratified by plant size and workers' gender, according to data on the working population at this setting. A total of 734 production workers were interviewed. Information was collected on safety climate and workers' behaviour towards occupational risks with a specific questionnaire. A safety climate index (SCI, scale 0-100) was constructed adding scores for each item measuring safety climate in the questionnaire. Workers' unsafe behaviour was analysed for the different safety climate index levels. Mean score for SCI was 71.90 (SD 19.19). There were no differences in SCI scores according to age, gender, education, children at charge, seniority at work, or type of employment. Small workplaces (<50 workers) showed significantly worse SCI (mean 67.23, SD 19.73) than the largest factories (>200 workers). Lower levels of SCI (SCI <50) were related to workers' unsafe behaviours (full/high accord with the statement "I excessively expose myself to hazards in my work", adjusted odds ratio ORa 2.79, 95% CI 1.60 to 4.88), and to lack of compliance with safety rules (ORa 12.83, 95% CI 5.92 to 27.80). Safety climate measures workers' perception of organisational factors related to occupational health and safety (for example, management commitment to risk prevention or priorities of safety versus production). In this study these factors are strongly associated with workers' attitudes towards safety at work. Longitudinal studies can further clarify the relation between safety climate and workers' behaviour regarding occupational safety and health.

You can't improve what you don't measure: Safety climate measures available in the German-speaking countries to support safety culture development in healthcare.

PubMed

Manser, Tanja; Brösterhaus, Mareen; Hammer, Antje

2016-01-01

Safety climate measurement is a key input into safety culture development. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the safety climate measures that have been evaluated for their psychometric properties in a German-speaking country and to make recommendations on how to use them in quality and patient safety improvement. A systematic search strategy was implemented to obtain relevant articles. PubMed and Web of Science databases were searched, and 128 abstracts were identified. After application of limits, 33 full texts were retrieved for subsequent evaluation. Studies were included on the basis of predetermined inclusion criteria and independent assessment by two reviewers. Publications were reviewed concerning healthcare setting, target group, safety culture dimensions covered and results of their psychometric evaluation. This review identified 11 instruments for safety climate assessment in different healthcare settings (i. e. hospitals, nursing homes, primary care, dental care and community pharmacy) for which acceptable to good internal consistency was reported. We observed wide variability concerning the number of dimensions (1 to 14; in some cases including outcome dimensions) and items (9 to 128) that the instruments were comprised of. Nevertheless, consistency with regard to the thematic areas covered was rather high. While there is clear evidence that we can assess safety climate in healthcare, the application of safety climate measures by quality and patient safety practitioners has so far been rather limited. This review bridges this gap between research and improvement practice by highlighting the central role of safety climate assessment in a mixed methods approach to inform safety culture development. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

Safety Climate Among Nontraditional Workers in Construction: Arguing for a Focus on Construed External Safety Image.

PubMed

Stiehl, Emily; Forst, Linda

2018-05-01

Safety climate, employees' perceptions of work-related safety, 1 has been promoted as a leading indicator of workplace safety in construction. 2 , 3 While research has primarily examined internal organizational sources (e.g., manager attitudes, formal organizational policies) on these perceptions, external sources of information might be more relevant to construction workers in nontraditional jobs who work for a limited time and/or have limited interaction with other employees. This paper argues for the future development of a construed external safety image scale to measure employees' perceptions about how external groups view their organization's safety. 4 The construed external safety image would capture the external sources that nontraditional workers use to assess safety climate and will allow public health researchers to identify and change dangerous workplaces while more effectively communicating information about safe workplaces to workers. The public health relevance of safety climate and construed external safety image for monitoring and communicating safety to nontraditional workers require examination.

Understanding safety climate in small automobile collision repair shops.

PubMed

Parker, David L; Brosseau, Lisa M; Bejan, Anca; Skan, Maryellen; Xi, Min

2014-01-01

In the United States, approximately 236,000 people work in 37,600 auto collision-repair businesses. Workers in the collision-repair industry may be exposed to a wide range of physical and chemical hazards. This manuscript examines the relationship of safety climate as reported by collision repair shop workers and owners to: (1) an independent business safety assessment, and (2) employee self-reported work practices. The study was conducted in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. A total of 199 workers from 49 collision shops completed a survey of self-reported work practices and safety climate. Surveys were completed by an owner or manager in all but three shops. In general, self-reported work practices were poor. Workers' scores on safety climate were uniformly lower than those of owners. For workers, there was no correlation between how well the business scored on an independent audit of business safety practices and the safety climate measures they reported. For owners, however, there was a positive correlation between safety climate scores and the business safety assessment. For workers, safety rules and procedures were associated with improved work practices for those engaged in both painting-related and body technician-related activities. The enforcement of safety rules and procedures emerged as a strong factor positively affecting self-reported work practices. These findings identify a simple, cost effective path to reducing hazards in small workplaces. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Impact of Market Orientation on Patient Safety Climate Among Hospital Nurses.

PubMed

Weng, Rhay-Hung; Chen, Jung-Chien; Pong, Li-Jung; Chen, Li-Mei; Lin, Tzu-Chi

2016-03-01

Improving market orientation and patient safety have become the key concerns of nursing management. For nurses, establishing a patient safety climate is the key to enhancing nursing quality. This study explores how market orientation affects the climate of patient safety among hospital nurses. We proposed adopting a cross-sectional research design and using questionnaires to collect responses from nurses working in two Taiwanese hospitals. Three-hundred and forty-three valid samples were obtained. Multiple regression and path analyses were conducted to test the study. Market orientation was defined as the combination of customer orientation, competitor orientation, and interfunctional coordination. Customer orientation directly affects the climate of patient safety. Although the findings only supported Hypothesis 1, competitor orientation and interfunctional coordination positively affected the patient safety climate through the mediating effects of hospital support for staff. Health care managers could encourage nurses to adopt customer-oriented perspectives to enhance their nursing care. In addition, to enhance competitor orientation, interfunctional coordination, and the patient safety climate, hospital managers could strengthen their support for staff members. © The Author(s) 2014.

Work Safety Climate, Safety Behaviors, and Occupational Injuries of Youth Farmworkers in North Carolina

PubMed Central

Rodriguez, Guadalupe; Quandt, Sara A.; Arcury, Justin T.; Arcury, Thomas A.

2015-01-01

Objectives. The aims of this project were to describe the work safety climate and the association between occupational safety behaviors and injuries among hired youth farmworkers in North Carolina (n = 87). Methods. We conducted personal interviews among a cross-sectional sample of youth farmworkers aged 10 to 17 years. Results. The majority of youths reported that work safety practices were very important to management, yet 38% stated that supervisors were only interested in “doing the job quickly and cheaply.” Few youths reported appropriate work safety behavior, and 14% experienced an injury within the past 12 months. In bivariate analysis, perceptions of work safety climate were significantly associated with pesticide exposure risk factors for rewearing wet shoes (P = .01), wet clothes (P = .01), and shorts (P = .03). Conclusions. Youth farmworkers perceived their work safety climate as being poor. Although additional research is needed to support these findings, these results strengthen the need to increase employer awareness to improve the safety climate for protecting youth farmworkers from harmful exposures and injuries. PMID:25973817

Use of a safety climate questionnaire in UK health care: factor structure, reliability and usability.

PubMed

Hutchinson, A; Cooper, K L; Dean, J E; McIntosh, A; Patterson, M; Stride, C B; Laurence, B E; Smith, C M

2006-10-01

To explore the factor structure, reliability, and potential usefulness of a patient safety climate questionnaire in UK health care. Four acute hospital trusts and nine primary care trusts in England. The questionnaire used was the 27 item Teamwork and Safety Climate Survey. Thirty three healthcare staff commented on the wording and relevance. The questionnaire was then sent to 3650 staff within the 13 NHS trusts, seeking to achieve at least 600 responses as the basis for the factor analysis. 1307 questionnaires were returned (36% response). Factor analyses and reliability analyses were carried out on 897 responses from staff involved in direct patient care, to explore how consistently the questions measured the underlying constructs of safety climate and teamwork. Some questionnaire items related to multiple factors or did not relate strongly to any factor. Five items were discarded. Two teamwork factors were derived from the remaining 11 teamwork items and three safety climate factors were derived from the remaining 11 safety items. Internal consistency reliabilities were satisfactory to good (Cronbach's alpha > or =0.69 for all five factors). This is one of the few studies to undertake a detailed evaluation of a patient safety climate questionnaire in UK health care and possibly the first to do so in primary as well as secondary care. The results indicate that a 22 item version of this safety climate questionnaire is useable as a research instrument in both settings, but also demonstrates a more general need for thorough validation of safety climate questionnaires before widespread usage.

Dimensions of Safety Climate among Iranian Nurses.

PubMed

Konjin, Z Naghavi; Shokoohi, Y; Zarei, F; Rahimzadeh, M; Sarsangi, V

2015-10-01

Workplace safety has been a concern of workers and managers for decades. Measuring safety climate is crucial in improving safety performance. It is also a method of benchmarking safety perception. To develop and validate a psychometrics scale for measuring nurses' safety climate. Literature review, subject matter experts and nurse's judgment were used in items developing. Content validity and reliability for new tool were tested by content validity index (CVI) and test-retest analysis, respectively. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with varimax rotation was used to improve the interpretation of latent factors. A 40-item scale in 6 factors was developed, which could explain 55% of the observed variance. The 6 factors included employees' involvement in safety and management support, compliance with safety rules, safety training and accessibility to personal protective equipment, hindrance to safe work, safety communication and job pressure, and individual risk perception. The proposed scale can be used in identifying the needed areas to implement interventions in safety climate of nurses.

Testing the reliability and validity of a measure of safety climate.

PubMed

Anderson, E; McGovern, P M; Kochevar, L; Vesley, D; Gershon, R

2000-01-01

The lack of compliance with universal precautions (UP) is well documented across a wide variety of healthcare professions and has been reported both before and after the enactment of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard. Gershon, Karkashian, and Felknor (1994) found that several factors correlated significantly with healthcare workers' lack of compliance with UP, including a measure of organizational safety climate (e.g., the employees' perception of their organizational culture and practices regarding safety). We conducted a secondary analysis using data from a cross-sectional survey of a convenience sample of 1,746 healthcare workers at risk of occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens to assess the validity and reliability of Gershon's measure of safety climate. Findings revealed no relationship between safety climate and employees' gender, age, education, tenure in position, profession, hours worked per day, perceived risk, attitude toward risk, and training. An association was demonstrated between safety climate and (1) healthcare worker compliance with UP and (2) the availability of personal protective equipment, providing support for the construct validity of this measure of safety climate. These findings could be used by occupational health professionals to assess employees' perceptions of the safety culture and practices in the workplace and to guide the institution's risk management efforts in association with U.P.

Worker health and safety and climate change in the Americas: issues and research needs.

PubMed

Kiefer, Max; Rodríguez-Guzmán, Julietta; Watson, Joanna; van Wendel de Joode, Berna; Mergler, Donna; da Silva, Agnes Soares

2016-09-01

SYNOPSIS This report summarizes and discusses current knowledge on the impact that climate change can have on occupational safety and health (OSH), with a particular focus on the Americas. Worker safety and health issues are presented on topics related to specific stressors (e.g., temperature extremes), climate associated impacts (e.g., ice melt in the Arctic), and a health condition associated with climate change (chronic kidney disease of non-traditional etiology). The article discusses research needs, including hazards, surveillance, and risk assessment activities to better characterize and understand how OSH may be associated with climate change events. Also discussed are the actions that OSH professionals can take to ensure worker health and safety in the face of climate change.

Worker health and safety and climate change in the Americas: issues and research needs

PubMed Central

Kiefer, Max; Rodríguez-Guzmán, Julietta; Watson, Joanna; van Wendel de Joode, Berna; Mergler, Donna; da Silva, Agnes Soares

2016-01-01

SYNOPSIS This report summarizes and discusses current knowledge on the impact that climate change can have on occupational safety and health (OSH), with a particular focus on the Americas. Worker safety and health issues are presented on topics related to specific stressors (e.g., temperature extremes), climate associated impacts (e.g., ice melt in the Arctic), and a health condition associated with climate change (chronic kidney disease of non-traditional etiology). The article discusses research needs, including hazards, surveillance, and risk assessment activities to better characterize and understand how OSH may be associated with climate change events. Also discussed are the actions that OSH professionals can take to ensure worker health and safety in the face of climate change. PMID:27991978

Quality and strength of patient safety climate on medical-surgical units.

PubMed

Hughes, Linda C; Chang, Yunkyung; Mark, Barbara A

2009-01-01

Describing the safety climate in hospitals is an important first step in creating work environments where safety is a priority. Yet, little is known about the patient safety climate on medical-surgical units. Study purposes were to describe quality and strength of the patient safety climate on medical-surgical units and explore hospital and unit characteristics associated with this climate. Data came from a larger organizational study to investigate hospital and unit characteristics associated with organizational, nurse, and patient outcomes. The sample for this study was 3,689 RNs on 286 medical-surgical units in 146 hospitals. Nursing workgroup and managerial commitment to safety were the two most strongly positive attributes of the patient safety climate. However, issues surrounding the balance between job duties and safety compliance and nurses' reluctance to reveal errors continue to be problematic. Nurses in Magnet hospitals were more likely to communicate about errors and participate in error-related problem solving. Nurses on smaller units and units with lower work complexity reported greater safety compliance and were more likely to communicate about and reveal errors. Nurses on smaller units also reported greater commitment to patient safety and participation in error-related problem solving. Nursing workgroup commitment to safety is a valuable resource that can be leveraged to promote a sense of personal responsibility for and shared ownership of patient safety. Managers can capitalize on this commitment by promoting a work environment in which control over nursing practice and active participation in unit decisions are encouraged and by developing channels of communication that increase staff nurse involvement in identifying patient safety issues, prioritizing unit-level safety goals, and resolving day-to-day operational problems the have the potential to jeopardize patient safety.

Thrill and adventure seeking in risky driving at work: The moderating role of safety climate.

PubMed

Wishart, Darren; Somoray, Klaire; Evenhuis, Amanda

2017-12-01

Introduction Within many industrialized countries, the leading cause of worker fatalities and serious injuries can be attributed to road trauma. In non-occupational research, high levels of sensation seeking personality, and specifically thrill and adventure seeking, have been associated with risky driving behaviors. In work driving literature, high organizational safety climate has been associated with reduced risky driving in work drivers. However, the extent that factors such as safety climate and thrill seeking interact in regard to work driving safety remains unclear, and the current research examined this interaction. Methods A total of 1,011 work drivers from four organizations participated in the research. Surveys were distributed online and hardcopies were sent via mail. The survey included measures of thrill and adventure seeking, safety climate and work-related driving behaviors, as well as questions relating to participant demographics and information about their work driving. Results The results demonstrated that safety climate significantly moderated the effect of thrill and adventure seeking trait on driving errors, driving violations, and driving while fatigued. Conclusion These results suggest that the development of a strong safety climate has the potential to improve work driving safety outcomes by reducing the impact of particular personality traits such as thrill seeking within an organizational context. Practical application To improve work driving safety, organizations and management need to develop strategies to encourage and foster positive work driving safety climate, particularly within work settings that may attract thrill and adventure seeking employees. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Patient safety climate in general public hospitals in China: differences associated with department and job type based on a cross-sectional survey.

PubMed

Zhou, Ping; Bai, Fei; Tang, Hui-Qin; Bai, Jie; Li, Min-Qi; Xue, Di

2018-04-17

This study analysed differences in the perceived patient safety climate among different working departments and job types in public general hospitals in China. Cross-sectional survey. Eighteen tertiary hospitals and 36 secondary hospitals from 10 areas in Shanghai, Hubei Province and Gansu Province, China. Overall, 4753 staff, including physicians, nurses, medical technicians and managers, were recruited from March to June 2015. The Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organisations (PSCHO) tool and the percentages of 'problematic responses' (PPRs) were used as outcome measures. Multivariable two-level random intercept models were applied in the analysis. A total of 4121 valid questionnaires were collected. Perceptions regarding the patient safety climate varied among departments and job types. Physicians responded with relatively more negative evaluations of 'organisational resources for safety', 'unit recognition and support for safety efforts', 'psychological safety', 'problem responsiveness' and overall safety climate. Paediatrics departments, intensive care units, emergency departments and clinical auxiliary departments require more attention. The PPRs for 'fear of blame and punishment' were universally significantly high, and the PPRs for 'fear of shame' and 'provision of safe care' were remarkably high, especially in some departments. Departmental differences across all dimensions and the overall safety climate primarily depended on job type. The differences suggest that strategies and measures for improving the patient safety climate should be tailored by working department and job type. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Making work safer: testing a model of social exchange and safety management.

PubMed

DeJoy, David M; Della, Lindsay J; Vandenberg, Robert J; Wilson, Mark G

2010-04-01

This study tests a conceptual model that focuses on social exchange in the context of safety management. The model hypothesizes that supportive safety policies and programs should impact both safety climate and organizational commitment. Further, perceived organizational support is predicted to partially mediate both of these relationships. Study outcomes included traditional outcomes for both organizational commitment (e.g., withdrawal behaviors) as well as safety climate (e.g., self-reported work accidents). Questionnaire responses were obtained from 1,723 employees of a large national retailer. Using structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques, all of the model's hypothesized relationships were statistically significant and in the expected directions. The results are discussed in terms of social exchange in organizations and research on safety climate. Maximizing safety is a social-technical enterprise. Expectations related to social exchange and reciprocity figure prominently in creating a positive climate for safety within the organization. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safety and Toxicology of Cannabinoids.

PubMed

Sachs, Jane; McGlade, Erin; Yurgelun-Todd, Deborah

2015-10-01

There is extensive research on the safety, toxicology, potency, and therapeutic potential of cannabis. However, uncertainty remains facilitating continued debate on medical and recreational cannabis policies at the state and federal levels. This review will include a brief description of cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system; a summary of the acute and long-term effects of cannabis; and a discussion of the therapeutic potential of cannabis. The conclusions about safety and efficacy will then be compared with the current social and political climate to suggest future policy directions and general guidelines.

Co-worker characteristics and nurses' safety-climate perceptions.

PubMed

Abrahamson, Kathleen; Ramanujam, Rangaraj; Anderson, James G

2013-01-01

Previous research indicates that nurses' safety-climate perceptions are influenced by individual nurse characteristics, leadership, staffing levels and workplace structure. No literature was identified that explored the relationship between nurses' safety climate perceptions and staffing composition in a particular hospital unit. This paper aims to fill some of the gaps in the research in this area. Data supplied by 430 registered nurses working in two Midwestern US hospitals were analyzed to co-worker characteristics such as education, licensure, experience and full- or part-time status. Registered nurses working in hospitals with proportionally more-experienced nurses perceived their workplaces to be significantly safer for patients. Surprisingly, co-worker licensure, education and full- or part-time status did not significantly influence nurses' safety climate perceptions. Findings indicate that safety-climate perceptions vary significantly between hospital units and experienced nurses may act as a resource that promotes a positive safety climate. Hospitals retaining experienced nurses may potentially reduce errors. The paper illustrates that the results highlight the importance of providing nurses with an environment that encourages retention and creates a workplace where experienced nurses' skills are best utilized.

Safety Climate and Occupational Stress According to Occupational Accidents Experience and Employment Type in Shipbuilding Industry of Korea.

PubMed

Kim, Kyung Woo; Park, Sung Jin; Lim, Hae Sun; Cho, Hm Hak

2017-09-01

Safety climate and occupational stress are related with occupational accident. The present study tried to identify the differences in safety climate and occupational stress according to occupational accidents experience and employment type (e.g., direct workers and subcontract workers). In this study, we conducted a survey using safety climate scale and Korean Occupational Stress Scale and classified the participants into four groups: direct workers working for accident-free departments, direct workers working for accident departments, subcontract workers working for accident-free departments, and subcontract workers working for accident departments for 2 years within the same workplace in the shipbuilding industry. The direct workers and subcontract workers showed diverse results in subscales of safety climate and occupational stress. This result is supported by existing studies; however, further study is necessary for more supporting evidence and elaborative methodological approach. The necessity of management for safety climate and psychosocial factor such as occupational stress for both direct workers and subcontract workers as a whole is suggested by this study.

Psychological safety and error reporting within Veterans Health Administration hospitals.

PubMed

Derickson, Ryan; Fishman, Jonathan; Osatuke, Katerine; Teclaw, Robert; Ramsel, Dee

2015-03-01

In psychologically safe workplaces, employees feel comfortable taking interpersonal risks, such as pointing out errors. Previous research suggested that psychologically safe climate optimizes organizational outcomes. We evaluated psychological safety levels in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) hospitals and assessed their relationship to employee willingness of reporting medical errors. We conducted an ANOVA on psychological safety scores from a VHA employees census survey (n = 185,879), assessing variability of means across racial and supervisory levels. We examined organizational climate assessment interviews (n = 374) evaluating how many employees asserted willingness to report errors (or not) and their stated reasons. Finally, based on survey data, we identified 2 (psychologically safe versus unsafe) hospitals and compared their number of employees who would be willing/unwilling to report an error. Psychological safety increased with supervisory level (P < 0.001, η = 0.03) and was not meaningfully related to race (P < 0.001, η = 0.003). Twelve percent of employees would not report an error; retaliation fear was the most commonly mentioned deterrent. Furthermore, employees at the psychologically unsafe hospital (71% would report, 13% would not) were less willing to report an error than at the psychologically safe hospital (91% would, 0% would not). A substantial minority would not report an error and were willing to admit so in a private interview setting. Their stated reasons as well as higher psychological safety means for supervisory employees both suggest power as an important determinant. Intentions to report were associated with psychological safety, strongly suggesting this climate aspect as instrumental to improving patient safety and reducing costs.

Organizational safety climate and supervisor safety enforcement: Multilevel explorations of the causes of accident underreporting.

PubMed

Probst, Tahira M

2015-11-01

According to national surveillance statistics, over 3 million employees are injured each year; yet, research indicates that these may be substantial underestimates of the true prevalence. The purpose of the current project was to empirically test the hypothesis that organizational safety climate and transactional supervisor safety leadership would predict the extent to which accidents go unreported by employees. Using hierarchical linear modeling and survey data collected from 1,238 employees in 33 organizations, employee-level supervisor safety enforcement behaviors (and to a less consistent extent, organizational-level safety climate) predicted employee accident underreporting. There was also a significant cross-level interaction, such that the effect of supervisor enforcement on underreporting was attenuated in organizations with a positive safety climate. These results may benefit human resources and safety professionals by pinpointing methods of increasing the accuracy of accident reporting, reducing actual safety incidents, and reducing the costs to individuals and organizations that result from underreporting. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Patient safety climate in general public hospitals in China: differences associated with department and job type based on a cross-sectional survey

PubMed Central

Zhou, Ping; Bai, Fei; Tang, Hui-qin; Bai, Jie; Li, Min-qi; Xue, Di

2018-01-01

Objective This study analysed differences in the perceived patient safety climate among different working departments and job types in public general hospitals in China. Design Cross-sectional survey. Setting Eighteen tertiary hospitals and 36 secondary hospitals from 10 areas in Shanghai, Hubei Province and Gansu Province, China. Participants Overall, 4753 staff, including physicians, nurses, medical technicians and managers, were recruited from March to June 2015. Main outcome measure The Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organisations (PSCHO) tool and the percentages of ‘problematic responses’ (PPRs) were used as outcome measures. Multivariable two-level random intercept models were applied in the analysis. Results A total of 4121 valid questionnaires were collected. Perceptions regarding the patient safety climate varied among departments and job types. Physicians responded with relatively more negative evaluations of ‘organisational resources for safety’, ‘unit recognition and support for safety efforts’, ‘psychological safety’, ‘problem responsiveness’ and overall safety climate. Paediatrics departments, intensive care units, emergency departments and clinical auxiliary departments require more attention. The PPRs for ‘fear of blame and punishment’ were universally significantly high, and the PPRs for ‘fear of shame’ and ‘provision of safe care’ were remarkably high, especially in some departments. Departmental differences across all dimensions and the overall safety climate primarily depended on job type. Conclusions The differences suggest that strategies and measures for improving the patient safety climate should be tailored by working department and job type. PMID:29666125

Individual employee's perceptions of " Group-level Safety Climate" (supervisor referenced) versus " Organization-level Safety Climate" (top management referenced): Associations with safety outcomes for lone workers.

PubMed

Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Lee, Jin; McFadden, Anna C; Rineer, Jennifer; Robertson, Michelle M

2017-01-01

Research has shown that safety climate is among the strongest predictors of safety behavior and safety outcomes in a variety of settings. Previous studies have established that safety climate is a multi-faceted construct referencing multiple levels of management within a company, most generally: the organization level (employee perceptions of top management's commitment to and prioritization of safety) and group level (employee perceptions of direct supervisor's commitment to and prioritization of safety). Yet, no research to date has examined the potential interaction between employees' organization-level safety climate (OSC) and group-level safety climate (GSC) perceptions. Furthermore, prior research has mainly focused on traditional work environments in which supervisors and workers interact in the same location throughout the day. Little research has been done to examine safety climate with regard to lone workers. The present study aims to address these gaps by examining the relationships between truck drivers' (as an example of lone workers) perceptions of OSC and GSC, both potential linear and non-linear relationships, and how these predict important safety outcomes. Participants were 8095 truck drivers from eight trucking companies in the United States with an average response rate of 44.8%. Results showed that employees' OSC and GSC perceptions are highly correlated (r= 0.78), but notable gaps between the two were observed for some truck drivers. Uniquely, both OSC and GSC scores were found to have curvilinear relationships with safe driving behavior, and both scores were equally predictive of safe driving behavior. Results also showed the two levels of climate significantly interacted with one another to predict safety behavior such that if either the OSC or GSC scores were low, the other's contribution to safety behavior became stronger. These findings suggest that OSC and GSC may function in a compensatory manner and promote safe driving behavior even when either OSC or GSC scores are low. The results of this study provide critical insight into the supplementary interaction between perceptions of OSC and GSC. Recommendations for future research, as well as practical recommendations for organizational intervention, are discussed. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Leadership style and patient safety: implications for nurse managers.

PubMed

Merrill, Katreena Collette

2015-06-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between nurse manager (NM) leadership style and safety climate. Nursing leaders are needed who will change the environment and increase patient safety. Hospital NMs are positioned to impact day-to-day operations. Therefore, it is essential to inform nurse executives regarding the impact of leadership style on patient safety. A descriptive correlational study was conducted in 41 nursing departments across 9 hospitals. The hospital unit safety climate survey and multifactorial leadership questionnaire were completed by 466 staff nurses. Bivariate and regression analyses were conducted to determine how well leadership style predicted safety climate. Transformational leadership style was demonstrated as a positive contributor to safety climate, whereas laissez-faire leadership style was shown to negatively contribute to unit socialization and a culture of blame. Nursing leaders must concentrate on developing transformational leadership skills while also diminishing negative leadership styles.

Systematic impact of institutional pressures on safety climate in the construction industry.

PubMed

He, Qinghua; Dong, Shuang; Rose, Timothy; Li, Heng; Yin, Qin; Cao, Dongping

2016-08-01

This paper explores how three types of institutional pressure (i.e., coercive, mimetic and normative pressures) systematically impact on the safety climate of construction projects. These impacts are empirically tested by survey data collected from 186 questionnaires of construction companies operating in Shanghai, China. The results, obtained by partial least squares analysis, show that organizational management commitment to safety and employee involvement is positively related to all three institutional pressures, while the perception of responsibility for safety and health is significantly influenced by coercive and mimetic pressure. However, coercive and normative pressures have no significant effect on the applicability of safety rules and work practices, revealing the importance of external organizational pressures in improving project safety climate from a systematic view. The findings also provide insights into the use of institutional forces to facilitate the improvement of safety climate in the construction industry. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The perception of the patient safety climate by professionals of the emergency department.

PubMed

Rigobello, Mayara Carvalho Godinho; Carvalho, Rhanna Emanuela Fontenele Lima de; Guerreiro, Juliana Magalhães; Motta, Ana Paula Gobbo; Atila, Elizabeth; Gimenes, Fernanda Raphael Escobar

2017-07-01

The aim of this study was to assess the patient safety climate from the perspective of healthcare professionals working in the emergency department of a hospital in Brazil. Emergency departments are complex and dynamic environments. They are prone to adverse events that compromise the quality of care provided and reveal the importance of patient safety culture and climate. This was a quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study. The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) - Short Form 2006 was used for data collection, validated and adapted into Portuguese. The study sample consisted of 125 participants. Most of the participants were female (57.6%) and had worked in emergency department for more than 10years (56.8%). Sixty-two participants (49.6%) were nursing professionals. The participants demonstrated satisfaction with their jobs and dissatisfaction with the actions of management with regard to safety issues. Participants' perceptions about the patient safety climate were found to be negative. Knowledge of professionals' perceptions of patient safety climate in the context of emergency care helps with assessments of the safety culture, contributes to improvement of health care, reduces adverse events, and can focus efforts to improve the quality of care provided to patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Can Leader–Member Exchange Contribute to Safety Performance in An Italian Warehouse?

PubMed Central

Mariani, Marco G.; Curcuruto, Matteo; Matic, Mirna; Sciacovelli, Paolo; Toderi, Stefano

2017-01-01

Introduction: The research considers safety climate in a warehouse and wants to analyze the Leader–Member Exchange (LMX) role in respect to safety performance. Griffin and Neal’s safety model was adopted and Leader-Member Exchange was inserted as moderator in the relationships between safety climate and proximal antecedents (motivation and knowledge) of safety performance constructs (compliance and participation). Materials and Methods: Survey data were collected from a sample of 133 full-time employees in an Italian warehouse. The statistical framework of Hayes (2013) was adopted for moderated mediation analysis. Results: Proximal antecedents partially mediated the relationship between Safety climate and safety participation, but not safety compliance. Moreover, the results from the moderation analysis showed that the Leader–Member Exchange moderated the influence of safety climate on proximal antecedents and the mediation exist only at the higher level of LMX. Conclusion: The study shows that the different aspects of leadership processes interact in explaining individual proficiency in safety practices. Practical Implications: Organizations as warehouses should improve the quality of the relationship between a leader and a subordinate based upon the dimensions of respect, trust, and obligation for high level of safety performance. PMID:28553244

Can Leader-Member Exchange Contribute to Safety Performance in An Italian Warehouse?

PubMed

Mariani, Marco G; Curcuruto, Matteo; Matic, Mirna; Sciacovelli, Paolo; Toderi, Stefano

2017-01-01

Introduction: The research considers safety climate in a warehouse and wants to analyze the Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) role in respect to safety performance. Griffin and Neal's safety model was adopted and Leader-Member Exchange was inserted as moderator in the relationships between safety climate and proximal antecedents (motivation and knowledge) of safety performance constructs (compliance and participation). Materials and Methods: Survey data were collected from a sample of 133 full-time employees in an Italian warehouse. The statistical framework of Hayes (2013) was adopted for moderated mediation analysis. Results: Proximal antecedents partially mediated the relationship between Safety climate and safety participation, but not safety compliance. Moreover, the results from the moderation analysis showed that the Leader-Member Exchange moderated the influence of safety climate on proximal antecedents and the mediation exist only at the higher level of LMX. Conclusion: The study shows that the different aspects of leadership processes interact in explaining individual proficiency in safety practices. Practical Implications: Organizations as warehouses should improve the quality of the relationship between a leader and a subordinate based upon the dimensions of respect, trust, and obligation for high level of safety performance.

Multilevel models in the explanation of the relationship between safety climate and safe behavior.

PubMed

Cheyne, Alistair; Tomás, José M; Oliver, Amparo

2013-01-01

This study examines the relationships between components of organizational safety climate, including employee attitudes to organizational safety issues; perceptions of the physical working environment, and evaluations of worker engagement with safety issues; and relates these to self-reported levels of safety behavior. It attempts to explore the relationships between these variables in 1189 workers across 78 work groups in a large transportation organization. Evaluations of safety climate, the working environment and worker engagement, as well as safe behaviors, were collected using a self report questionnaire. The multilevel analysis showed that both levels of evaluation (the work group and the individual), and some cross-level interactions, were significant in explaining safe behaviors. Analyses revealed that a number of variables, at both levels, were associated with worker engagement and safe behaviors. The results suggest that, while individual evaluations of safety issues are important, there is also a role for the fostering of collective safety climates in encouraging safe behaviors and therefore reducing accidents.

Poor safety climate, long work hours, and musculoskeletal discomfort among Latino horse farm workers.

PubMed

Swanberg, Jennifer; Clouser, Jessica Miller; Gan, Wenqi; Flunker, John C; Westneat, Susan; Browning, Steven R

2017-09-03

This study investigated the prevalence of self-reported musculoskeletal discomfort (MSD) and work-related factors associated with elevated MSD among Latino thoroughbred farm workers. Participants (N = 225) were recruited using a community-based purposive sampling approach to participate in in-person interviews. Of these workers, 85% experienced MSD. MSD was divided into tertiles; the upper tertile was defined as elevated. Multivariable Poisson regression revealed associations between any elevated MSD and longer tenure on horse farms, longer work hours, and poor safety climate. Elevated neck/back MSD was associated with longer tenure, longer work hours, and poor safety climate. Elevated upper extremity MSD was associated with age and poor safety climate. Elevated lower extremity MSD was associated with longer tenure, longer work hours, and being female. Musculoskeletal discomfort is common among these workers. Improving safety climate and minimizing long work hours is recommended.

Investment in workforce health: exploring the implications for workforce safety climate and commitment.

PubMed

Mearns, Kathryn; Hope, Lorraine; Ford, Michael T; Tetrick, Lois E

2010-09-01

The relationship between investment in employee health and non-health outcomes has received little research attention. Drawing from social exchange and climate theory, the current study uses a multilevel approach to examine the implications of worksite health investment for worksite safety and health climate and employee safety compliance and commitment to the worksite. Data were collected from 1932 personnel working on 31 offshore installations operating in UK waters. Installation medics provided corporate workforce health investment details for 20 of these installations. The findings provide support for a strong link between health investment practices and worksite safety and health climate. The results also found a relationship between health investment practices and organizational commitment among employees. These results suggest that health investment practices are associated with committed workforces and climates that reflect a priority on health and safety. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Advancing the framework for considering the effects of climate change on worker safety and health.

PubMed

Schulte, P A; Bhattacharya, A; Butler, C R; Chun, H K; Jacklitsch, B; Jacobs, T; Kiefer, M; Lincoln, J; Pendergrass, S; Shire, J; Watson, J; Wagner, G R

2016-11-01

In 2009, a preliminary framework for how climate change could affect worker safety and health was described. That framework was based on a literature search from 1988-2008 that supported seven categories of climate-related occupational hazards: (1) increased ambient temperature; (2) air pollution; (3) ultraviolet radiation exposure; (4) extreme weather; (5) vector-borne diseases and expanded habitats; (6) industrial transitions and emerging industries; and (7) changes in the built environment. This article reviews the published literature from 2008-2014 in each of the seven categories. Additionally, three new topics related to occupational safety and health are considered: mental health effects, economic burden, and potential worker safety and health impacts associated with the nascent field of climate intervention (geoengineering). Beyond updating the literature, this article also identifies key priorities for action to better characterize and understand how occupational safety and health may be associated with climate change events and ensure that worker health and safety issues are anticipated, recognized, evaluated, and mitigated. These key priorities include research, surveillance, risk assessment, risk management, and policy development. Strong evidence indicates that climate change will continue to present occupational safety and health hazards, and this framework may be a useful tool for preventing adverse effects to workers.

Advancing the framework for considering the effects of climate change on worker safety and health

PubMed Central

Schulte, P.A.; Bhattacharya, A.; Butler, C.R.; Chun, H.K.; Jacklitsch, B.; Jacobs, T.; Kiefer, M.; Lincoln, J.; Pendergrass, S.; Shire, J.; Watson, J.; Wagner, G.R.

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT In 2009, a preliminary framework for how climate change could affect worker safety and health was described. That framework was based on a literature search from 1988–2008 that supported seven categories of climate-related occupational hazards: (1) increased ambient temperature; (2) air pollution; (3) ultraviolet radiation exposure; (4) extreme weather; (5) vector-borne diseases and expanded habitats; (6) industrial transitions and emerging industries; and (7) changes in the built environment. This article reviews the published literature from 2008–2014 in each of the seven categories. Additionally, three new topics related to occupational safety and health are considered: mental health effects, economic burden, and potential worker safety and health impacts associated with the nascent field of climate intervention (geoengineering). Beyond updating the literature, this article also identifies key priorities for action to better characterize and understand how occupational safety and health may be associated with climate change events and ensure that worker health and safety issues are anticipated, recognized, evaluated, and mitigated. These key priorities include research, surveillance, risk assessment, risk management, and policy development. Strong evidence indicates that climate change will continue to present occupational safety and health hazards, and this framework may be a useful tool for preventing adverse effects to workers. PMID:27115294

Variation in Emergency Medical Services Workplace Safety Culture

PubMed Central

Patterson, P. Daniel; Huang, David T.; Fairbanks, Rollin J.; Simeone, Scott; Weaver, Matthew; Wang, Henry E.

2010-01-01

Introduction Workplace attitude, beliefs and culture may impact the safety of patient care. This study characterized perceptions of safety culture in a nationwide sample of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) agencies. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey involving 61 Advanced Life Support EMS agencies in North America. We administered a modified version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ), a survey instrument measuring dimensions of workplace safety culture (Safety Climate, Teamwork Climate, Perceptions of Management, Job Satisfaction, Working Conditions, and Stress Recognition). We included full-time and part-time paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians. We determined the variation in safety culture scores across EMS agencies. Using Hierarchical Linear Models (HLM), we determined associations between safety culture scores and individual and EMS agency characteristics. Results We received 1,715 completed surveys from 61 EMS agencies (mean agency response rate 47%; 95% CI 10%, 83%). There was wide variation in safety culture scores across EMS agencies [mean (min, max)]: Safety Climate 74.5 (Min 49.9, Max 89.7), Teamwork Climate 71.2 (Min 45.1, Max 90.1), Perceptions of Management 67.2 (Min 31.1, Max 92.2), Job Satisfaction 75.4 (Min 47.5, Max 93.8), Working Conditions 66.9 (Min 36.6, Max 91.4), Stress Recognition 55.1 (Min 31.3, Max 70.6). Air medical EMS agencies tended to score higher across all safety culture domains. Lower safety culture scores were associated with increased annual patient contacts. Safety climate domain scores were not associated with other individual or EMS agency characteristics. Conclusion In this sample, workplace safety culture varies between EMS agencies. PMID:20809688

Safety climate in dialysis centers in Saudi Arabia: a multicenter study.

PubMed

Taher, Saadi; Hejaili, Fayez; Karkar, Ayman; Shaheen, Faissal; Barahmien, Majdah; Al Saran, Khalid; Jondeby, Mohamed; Suleiman, Mohamed; Al Sayyari, Abdulla Ahmed

2014-06-01

The aim of this study was to assess the safety climate as perceived by nurses and physicians in the dialysis units in Saudi Arabia. This is a cross-sectional survey-based multicenter study using the Safety Climate Scale, which assesses the perception by staff of the prevailing climate of safety. We used 17 items in this survey. These could be further divided into 3 summative categories: (a) handling of errors and safety concerns (9 items), (b) leadership emphasis of safety (7 items), and (c) overall safety recommendation (1 item). The survey uses 5 Likert scale options (1, disagree strongly; 2, disagree slightly; 3, neutral; 4, agree slightly; and 5, agree strongly). There were 509 respondents--a response rate of 76.6% and 53.3% among nurses and physicians, respectively. The internal consistency using Cronbach α was 0.899. The overall mean (SD) of satisfaction with safety climate was higher among the nurses than the physicians (4.13 [1.1] and 4.05 [1.7], respectively; P = 0.029). The overall agreement rate was 73.8%, with more nurses than physicians agreeing that safety climate prevails the dialysis center (75.4% versus 72.1%, respectively; P = 0.047).The respondents perceived a stronger commitment to safety from their clinical area leaders than from senior leaders in the organization (76.2% and 72.4%, respectively). In addition, the physicians gave lower scores to more questions than the nurses particularly in 3 areas, namely, "leadership is driving us to be a safety-centered institution" (71.5% versus 76.5%; P = 0.037), "I am encouraged by my colleagues to report any patient safety concerns I may have" (67.4% versus 84.7%; P = 0.03), and "I know proper channels to ask questions about safety" (69.6% versus 87.2%; P = 0.002).The scores by the physicians in all the 3 summative categories were again less than the scores by the nurses, but this did not reach a statistical significance. The nurses had higher perceptions of a prevailing safety climate than the physicians. There was a perception of a stronger commitment to safety from their clinical area leaders than from senior leaders in the organization. Senior management needs to relay their commitments to safety more effectively especially to physicians and to open clear and easily accessible channels for communication for safety issues.

A test of safety, violence prevention, and civility climate domain-specific relationships with relevant workplace hazards.

PubMed

Gazica, Michele W; Spector, Paul E

2016-01-01

Safety climate, violence prevention climate, and civility climate were independently developed and linked to domain-specific workplace hazards, although all three were designed to promote the physical and psychological safety of workers. To test domain specificity between conceptually related workplace climates and relevant workplace hazards. Data were collected from 368 persons employed in various industries and descriptive statistics were calculated for all study variables. Correlational and relative weights analyses were used to test for domain specificity. The three climate domains were similarly predictive of most workplace hazards, regardless of domain specificity. This study suggests that the three climate domains share a common higher order construct that may predict relevant workplace hazards better than any of the scales alone.

Using the Job Demands-Resources model to investigate risk perception, safety climate and job satisfaction in safety critical organizations.

PubMed

Nielsen, Morten Birkeland; Mearns, Kathryn; Matthiesen, Stig Berge; Eid, Jarle

2011-10-01

Using the Job Demands-Resources model (JD-R) as a theoretical framework, this study investigated the relationship between risk perception as a job demand and psychological safety climate as a job resource with regard to job satisfaction in safety critical organizations. In line with the JD-R model, it was hypothesized that high levels of risk perception is related to low job satisfaction and that a positive perception of safety climate is related to high job satisfaction. In addition, it was hypothesized that safety climate moderates the relationship between risk perception and job satisfaction. Using a sample of Norwegian offshore workers (N = 986), all three hypotheses were supported. In summary, workers who perceived high levels of risk reported lower levels of job satisfaction, whereas this effect diminished when workers perceived their safety climate as positive. Follow-up analyses revealed that this interaction was dependent on the type of risks in question. The results of this study supports the JD-R model, and provides further evidence for relationships between safety-related concepts and work-related outcomes indicating that organizations should not only develop and implement sound safety procedures to reduce the effects of risks and hazards on workers, but can also enhance other areas of organizational life through a focus on safety. © 2011 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology © 2011 The Scandinavian Psychological Associations.

Relationship between organizational justice and organizational safety climate: do fairness perceptions influence employee safety behaviour?

PubMed

Gyekye, Seth Ayim; Haybatollahi, Mohammad

2014-01-01

This study investigated the relationships between organizational justice, organizational safety climate, job satisfaction, safety compliance and accident frequency. Ghanaian industrial workers participated in the study (N = 320). Safety climate and justice perceptions were assessed with Hayes, Parender, Smecko, et al.'s (1998) and Blader and Tyler's (2003) scales respectively. A median split was performed to dichotomize participants into 2 categories: workers with positive and workers with negative justice perceptions. Confirmatory factors analysis confirmed the 5-factor structure of the safety scale. Regression analyses and t tests indicated that workers with positive fairness perceptions had constructive perspectives regarding workplace safety, expressed greater job satisfaction, were more compliant with safety policies and registered lower accident rates. These findings provide evidence that the perceived level of fairness in an organization is closely associated with workplace safety perception and other organizational factors which are important for safety. The implications for safety research are discussed.

Perceived safety climate, job demands, and coworker support among union and nonunion injured construction workers.

PubMed

Gillen, Marion; Baltz, Davis; Gassel, Margy; Kirsch, Luz; Vaccaro, Diane

2002-01-01

This study evaluated injured construction workers' perceptions of workplace safety climate, psychological job demands, decision latitude, and coworker support, and the relationship of these variables to the injury severity sustained by the workers. Injury severity was assessed using the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), which evaluates functional limitations. Worker perceptions of workplace variables were determined by two instruments: (a) the Safety Climate Measure for Construction Sites and (b) the Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ). The overall model explained 23% of the variance in injury severity, with unique contributions provided by union status, the Safety Climate Score, and Psychological Job Demands. A positive significant correlation was found between injury severity and the Safety Climate Scores (r = .183, P = .003), and between the Safety Climate Scores and union status (r = .225, P < .001). There were statistically significant differences between union and nonunion workers' responses regarding perceived safety climate on 5 of the 10 safety climate items. Union workers were more likely than nonunion workers to: (a) perceive their supervisors as caring about their safety; (b) be made aware of dangerous work practices; (c) have received safety instructions when hired; (d) have regular job safety meetings; and (e) perceive that taking risks was not a part of their job. However, with regard to the 49-item JCQ, which includes Coworker Support, the responses between union and nonunion workers were very similar, indicating an overall high degree of job satisfaction. However, workers who experienced their workplace as more safe also perceived the level of management (r = -.55, P < .001) and coworker (r = -.31, P < .001) support as being higher. The findings of this study underscore the critical need for construction managers to alert workers to dangerous work practices and conditions more frequently, and express concern and praise workers for safe work in a manner that is culturally acceptable in this industry. Workplace interventions that decrease the incidence and severity of injuries, but that are flexible enough to meet a variety of potentially competing imperatives, such as production deadlines and client demands, need to be identified.

The relationship between safety climate and recent accidents: behavioral learning and cognitive attributions.

PubMed

Desai, Vinit M; Roberts, Karlene H; Ciavarelli, Anthony P

2006-01-01

The association between accidents and subsequent work unit safety perceptions was assessed to address cognitive and behavioral changes following accidents. Many studies attempt to predict accident rates using measures of work unit safety, but effects vary considerably. Conversely, this study examined whether recent accidents may be positively associated with work unit safety perceptions, as suggested by behavioral learning mechanisms (increases in safety investments following accidents) or cognitive mechanisms (defensive attributions regarding accident causality). Lagged squadron-level accident experience was correlated with work unit safety perceptions obtained through a 61-question safety climate survey administered to 6,361 individuals in U.S. Navy flight squadrons. Positive associations between minor or intermediately severe accidents and future safety climate scores were found, although no effect was found for major accidents. We suggest that accident history should be considered when examining work unit safety perceptions because recent accidents may be associated with higher safety climate scores. We did not find that this varies systematically with accident severity, and longitudinal research on additional samples is needed to further test this possibility. This research may be used to refine measurement of work unit safety and to examine impacts of accidents or safety violations on workers' cognitive processes and group behavioral changes.

A test of safety, violence prevention, and civility climate domain-specific relationships with relevant workplace hazards

PubMed Central

Spector, Paul E.

2016-01-01

Background Safety climate, violence prevention climate, and civility climate were independently developed and linked to domain-specific workplace hazards, although all three were designed to promote the physical and psychological safety of workers. Purpose To test domain specificity between conceptually related workplace climates and relevant workplace hazards. Methods Data were collected from 368 persons employed in various industries and descriptive statistics were calculated for all study variables. Correlational and relative weights analyses were used to test for domain specificity. Results The three climate domains were similarly predictive of most workplace hazards, regardless of domain specificity. Discussion This study suggests that the three climate domains share a common higher order construct that may predict relevant workplace hazards better than any of the scales alone. PMID:27110930

School Climate: An Essential Component of a Comprehensive School Safety Plan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stark, Heidi

2017-01-01

The intentional assessment and management of school climate is an essential component of a comprehensive school safety plan. The value of this preventive aspect of school safety is often diminished as schools invest resources in physical security measures as a narrowly focused effort to increase school safety (Addington, 2009). This dissertation…

Changes in safety climate and teamwork in the operating room after implementation of a revised WHO checklist: a prospective interventional study.

PubMed

Erestam, Sofia; Haglind, Eva; Bock, David; Andersson, Annette Erichsen; Angenete, Eva

2017-01-01

Inter-professional teamwork in the operating room is important for patient safety. The World Health Organization (WHO) checklist was introduced to improve intraoperative teamwork. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety climate in a Swedish operating room setting before and after an intervention, using a revised version of the WHO checklist to improve teamwork. This study is a single center prospective interventional study. Participants were personnel working in operating room teams including surgeons, anesthesiologists, scrub nurses, nurse anaesthetists and nurse assistants. The study started with pre-interventional observations of the WHO checklist use followed by education on safety climate, the WHO checklist, and non-technical skills in the operating room. Thereafter a revised version of the WHO checklist was introduced. Post-interventional observations regarding the performance of the WHO checklist were carried out. The Safety Attitude Questionnaire was used to assess safety climate at baseline and post-intervention. At baseline we discovered a need for improved teamwork and communication. The participants considered teamwork to be important for patient safety, but had different perceptions of good teamwork between professions. The intervention, a revised version of the WHO checklist, did not affect teamwork climate. Adherence to the revision of the checklist was insufficient, dominated by a lack of structure. There was no significant change in teamwork climate by use of the revised WHO checklist, which may be due to insufficient implementation, as a lack of adherence to the WHO checklist was detected. We found deficiencies in teamwork and communication. Further studies exploring how to improve safety climate are needed. NCT02329691.

Exploring the possibility of a common structural model measuring associations between safety climate factors and safety behaviour in health care and the petroleum sectors.

PubMed

Olsen, Espen

2010-09-01

The aim of the present study was to explore the possibility of identifying general safety climate concepts in health care and petroleum sectors, as well as develop and test the possibility of a common cross-industrial structural model. Self-completion questionnaire surveys were administered in two organisations and sectors: (1) a large regional hospital in Norway that offers a wide range of hospital services, and (2) a large petroleum company that produces oil and gas worldwide. In total, 1919 and 1806 questionnaires were returned from the hospital and petroleum organisation, with response rates of 55 percent and 52 percent, respectively. Using a split sample procedure principal factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis revealed six identical cross-industrial measurement concepts in independent samples-five measures of safety climate and one of safety behaviour. The factors' psychometric properties were explored with satisfactory internal consistency and concept validity. Thus, a common cross-industrial structural model was developed and tested using structural equation modelling (SEM). SEM revealed that a cross-industrial structural model could be identified among health care workers and offshore workers in the North Sea. The most significant contributing variables in the model testing stemmed from organisational management support for safety and supervisor/manager expectations and actions promoting safety. These variables indirectly enhanced safety behaviour (stop working in dangerous situations) through transitions and teamwork across units, and teamwork within units as well as learning, feedback, and improvement. Two new safety climate instruments were validated as part of the study: (1) Short Safety Climate Survey (SSCS) and (2) Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture-short (HSOPSC-short). Based on development of measurements and structural model assessment, this study supports the possibility of a common safety climate structural model across health care and the offshore petroleum industry. 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Study on occupational safety climate in different types of enterprises and its relationship with occupational accidental injury].

PubMed

Liu, Xinxia; Huang, Guoxian; Wang, Shuyu; Guo, Zhiping; Zhou, Yuchao; Chen, Weiqing

2014-04-01

To evaluate the occupational safety climate in different types of enterprises and its relationship with occupational accidental injury. A cross-sectional survey based on self-report questionnaires was performed among 3311 front-line workers from 54 medium and small-sized manufacturing enterprises of different types in Zhongshan, China to investigate the socio-demographic characteristics, safety climate experience in workplace, and incidence of occupational accidental injury in the past year. Analysis of the data revealed that employees in different types of companies perceived different levels of safety climate, according to the scores on four subscales; the European and American enterprises had significantly better safety climate than the Hong Kong and Chinese private enterprises (P < 0.01). The self-reported rates of occupational injury were 3.38%, 4.76%, and 6.72%, respectively, for European and American, Hong Kong, and Chinese private enterprises (χ(2) = 6.78, P < 0.05). After control of such factors as age, sex, income, education level, and marriage, the logistic regression analysis showed that the risk of occupational accidental injury in the European and American enterprises was significantly lower than that in the Chinese private enterprises (OR = 0.57, 95%CI = 0.35-0.91). The type of enterprise influences the occupational safety climate and incidence of occupational injury among workers.

Improving Performance of the System Safety Function at Marshall Space Flight Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kiessling, Ed; Tippett, Donald D.; Shivers, Herb

2004-01-01

The Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) determined that organizational and management issues were significant contributors to the loss of Space Shuttle Columbia. In addition, the CAIB observed similarities between the organizational and management climate that preceded the Challenger accident and the climate that preceded the Columbia accident. To prevent recurrence of adverse organizational and management climates, effective implementation of the system safety function is suggested. Attributes of an effective system safety program are presented. The Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) system safety program is analyzed using the attributes. Conclusions and recommendations for improving the MSFC system safety program are offered in this case study.

Perceptions of safety culture vary across the intensive care units of a single institution.

PubMed

Huang, David T; Clermont, Gilles; Sexton, J Bryan; Karlo, Crystal A; Miller, Rachel G; Weissfeld, Lisa A; Rowan, Kathy M; Angus, Derek C

2007-01-01

To determine whether safety culture factors varied across the intensive care units (ICUs) of a single hospital, between nurses and physicians, and to explore ICU nursing directors' perceptions of their personnel's attitudes. Cross-sectional surveys using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire-ICU version, a validated, aviation industry-based safety culture survey instrument. It assesses culture across six factors: teamwork climate, perceptions of management, safety climate, stress recognition, job satisfaction, and work environment. Four ICUs in one tertiary care hospital. All ICU personnel. We conducted the survey from January 1 to April 1, 2003, and achieved a 70.2% response rate (318 of 453). We calculated safety culture factor mean and percent-positive scores (percentage of respondents with a mean score of > or =75 on a 0-100 scale for which 100 is best) for each ICU. We compared mean ICU scores by ANOVA and percent-positive scores by chi-square. Mean and percent-positive scores by job category were modeled using a generalized estimating equations approach and compared using Wald statistics. We asked ICU nursing directors to estimate their personnel's mean scores and generated ratios of their estimates to the actual scores.Overall, factor scores were low to moderate across all factors (range across ICUs: 43.4-74.9 mean scores, 8.6-69.4 percent positive). Mean and percent-positive scores differed significantly (p < .0083, Bonferroni correction) across ICUs, except for stress recognition, which was uniformly low. Compared with physicians, nurses had significantly lower mean working conditions and perceptions of management scores. ICU nursing directors tended to overestimate their personnel's attitudes. This was greatest for teamwork, for which all director estimates exceeded actual scores, with a mean overestimate of 16%. Significant safety culture variation exists across ICUs of a single hospital. ICU nursing directors tend to overestimate their personnel's attitudes, particularly for teamwork. Culture assessments based on institutional level analysis or director opinion may be flawed.

Psychosocial safety climate moderates the job demand-resource interaction in predicting workgroup distress.

PubMed

Dollard, Maureen F; Tuckey, Michelle R; Dormann, Christian

2012-03-01

Psychosocial safety climate (PSC) arises from workplace policies, practices, and procedures for the protection of worker psychological health and safety that are largely driven by management. Many work stress theories are based on the fundamental interaction hypothesis - that a high level of job demands (D) will lead to psychological distress and that this relationship will be offset when there are high job resources (R). However we proposed that this interaction really depends on the organizational context; in particular high levels of psychosocial safety climate will enable the safe utilization of resources to reduce demands. The study sample consisted of police constables from 23 police units (stations) with longitudinal survey responses at two time points separated by 14 months (Time 1, N=319, Time 2, N=139). We used hierarchical linear modeling to assess the effect of the proposed three-way interaction term (PSC×D×R) on change in workgroup distress variance over time. Specifically we confirmed the interaction between emotional demands and emotional resources (assessed at the individual level), in the context of unit psychosocial safety climate (aggregated individual data). As predicted, high emotional resources moderated the positive relationship between emotional demands and change in workgroup distress but only when there were high levels of unit psychosocial safety climate. Results were confirmed using a split-sample analysis. Results support psychosocial safety climate as a property of the organization and a target for higher order controls for reducing work stress. The 'right' climate enables resources to do their job. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The link between leadership and safety outcomes in hospitals.

PubMed

Squires, Mae; Tourangeau, Ann; Spence Laschinger, Heather K; Doran, Diane

2010-11-01

To test and refine a model examining relationships among leadership, interactional justice, quality of the nursing work environment, safety climate and patient and nurse safety outcomes. The quality of nursing work environments may pose serious threats to patient and nurse safety. Justice is an important element in work environments that support safety initiatives yet little research has been done that looks at how leader interactional justice influences safety outcomes. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 600 acute care registered nurses (RNs) to test and refine a model linking interactional justice, the quality of nurse leader-nurse relationships, work environment and safety climate with patient and nurse outcomes. In general the hypothesized model was supported. Resonant leadership and interactional justice influenced the quality of the leader-nurse relationship which in turn affected the quality of the work environment and safety climate. This ultimately was associated with decreased reported medication errors, intentions to leave and emotional exhaustion. Quality relationships based on fairness and empathy play a pivotal role in creating positive safety climates and work environments. To advocate for safe work environments, managers must strive to develop high-quality relationships through just leadership practices. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Organizational climate determinants of resident safety culture in nursing homes.

PubMed

Arnetz, Judith E; Zhdanova, Ludmila S; Elsouhag, Dalia; Lichtenberg, Peter; Luborsky, Mark R; Arnetz, Bengt B

2011-12-01

In recent years, there has been an increasing focus on the role of safety culture in preventing costly adverse events, such as medication errors and falls, among nursing home residents. However, little is known regarding critical organizational determinants of a positive safety culture in nursing homes. The aim of this study was to identify organizational climate predictors of specific aspects of the staff-rated resident safety culture (RSC) in a sample of nursing homes. Staff at 4 Michigan nursing homes responded to a self-administered questionnaire measuring organizational climate and RSC. Multiple regression analyses were used to identify organizational climate factors that predicted the safety culture dimensions nonpunitive response to mistakes, communication about incidents, and compliance with procedures.  The organizational climate factors efficiency and work climate predicted nonpunitive response to mistakes (p < .001 for both scales) and compliance with procedures (p < .05 and p < .001 respectively). Work stress was an inverse predictor of compliance with procedures (p < .05). Goal clarity was the only significant predictor of communication about incidents (p < .05). Efficiency, work climate, work stress, and goal clarity are all malleable organizational factors that could feasibly be the focus of interventions to improve RSC. Future studies will examine whether these results can be replicated with larger samples.

Psychosocial safety climate buffers effects of job demands on depression and positive organizational behaviors.

PubMed

Hall, Garry B; Dollard, Maureen F; Winefield, Anthony H; Dormann, Christian; Bakker, Arnold B

2013-01-01

In a general population sample of 2343 Australian workers from a wide ranging employment demographic, we extended research testing the buffering role of psychosocial safety climate (PSC) as a macro-level resource within the health impairment process of the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model. Moderated structural equation modeling was used to test PSC as a moderator between emotional and psychological job demands and worker depression compared with control and social support as alternative moderators. We also tested PSC as a moderator between depression and positive organizational behaviors (POB; engagement and job satisfaction) compared with control and social support as moderators. As expected we found PSC moderated the effects of job demands on depression and further moderated the effects of depression on POB with fit to the data that was as good as control and social support as moderators. This study has shown that PSC is a macro-level resource and safety signal for workers acting to reduce demand-induced depression. We conclude that organizations need to focus on the development of a robust PSC that will operate to buffer the effects of workplace psychosocial hazards and to build environments conducive to worker psychological health and positive organizational behaviors.

Do nurse and patient injuries share common antecedents? An analysis of associations with safety climate and working conditions.

PubMed

Taylor, Jennifer A; Dominici, Francesca; Agnew, Jacqueline; Gerwin, Daniel; Morlock, Laura; Miller, Marlene R

2012-02-01

Safety climate and nurses' working conditions may have an impact on both patient outcomes and nurse occupational health, but these outcomes have rarely been examined concurrently. To examine the association of unit-level safety climate and specific nurse working conditions with injury outcomes for both nurses and patients in a single hospital. A cross-sectional study was conducted using nursing-unit level and individual-level data at an urban, level-one trauma centre in the USA. Multilevel logistic regressions were used to examine associations among injury outcomes, safety climate and working conditions on 29 nursing units, including a total of 723 nurses and 28 876 discharges. Safety climate was measured in 2004 using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). Working conditions included registered nursing hours per patient day (RNHPPD) and unit turnover. Patient injuries included 290 falls, 167 pulmonary embolism/deep vein thrombosis (PE/DVT), and 105 decubitus ulcers. Nurse injury was defined as a reported needle-stick, splash, slip, trip, or fall (n=78). Working conditions and outcomes were measured in 2005. The study found a negative association between two SAQ domains, Safety and Teamwork, with the odds of both decubitus ulcers and nurse injury. RNHPPD showed a negative association with patient falls and decubitus ulcers. Unit turnover was positively associated with nurse injury and PE/DVT, but negatively associated with falls and decubitus ulcers. Safety climate was associated with both patient and nurse injuries, suggesting that patient and nurse safety may actually be linked outcomes. The findings also indicate that increased unit turnover should be considered a risk factor for nurse and patient injuries.

The development and psychometric evaluation of a safety climate measure for primary care.

PubMed

de Wet, C; Spence, W; Mash, R; Johnson, P; Bowie, P

2010-12-01

Building a safety culture is an important part of improving patient care. Measuring perceptions of safety climate among healthcare teams and organisations is a key element of this process. Existing measurement instruments are largely developed for secondary care settings in North America and many lack adequate psychometric testing. Our aim was to develop and test an instrument to measure perceptions of safety climate among primary care teams in National Health Service for Scotland. Questionnaire development was facilitated through a steering group, literature review, semistructured interviews with primary care team members, a modified Delphi and completion of a content validity index by experts. A cross-sectional postal survey utilising the questionnaire was undertaken in a random sample of west of Scotland general practices to facilitate psychometric evaluation. Statistical methods, including exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and Cronbach and Raykov reliability coefficients were conducted. Of the 667 primary care team members based in 49 general practices surveyed, 563 returned completed questionnaires (84.4%). Psychometric evaluation resulted in the development of a 30-item questionnaire with five safety climate factors: leadership, teamwork, communication, workload and safety systems. Retained items have strong factor loadings to only one factor. Reliability coefficients was satisfactory (α = 0.94 and ρ = 0.93). This study is the first stage in the development of an appropriately valid and reliable safety climate measure for primary care. Measuring safety climate perceptions has the potential to help primary care organisations and teams focus attention on safety-related issues and target improvement through educational interventions. Further research is required to explore acceptability and feasibility issues for primary care teams and the potential for organisational benchmarking.

Revealing and Resolving Patient Safety Defects: The Impact of Leadership WalkRounds on Frontline Caregiver Assessments of Patient Safety

PubMed Central

Frankel, Allan; Grillo, Sarah Pratt; Pittman, Mary; Thomas, Eric J; Horowitz, Lisa; Page, Martha; Sexton, Bryan

2008-01-01

Objective To evaluate the impact of rigorous WalkRounds on frontline caregiver assessments of safety climate, and to clarify the steps and implementation of rigorous WalkRounds. Data Sources/Study Setting Primary outcome variables were baseline and post WalkRounds safety climate scores from the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). Secondary outcomes were safety issues elicited through WalkRounds. Study period was August 2002 to April 2005; seven hospitals in Massachusetts agreed to participate; and the project was implemented in all patient care areas. Study Design Prospective study of the impact of rigorously applied WalkRounds on frontline caregivers assessments of safety climate in their patient care area. WalkRounds were conducted weekly and according to the seven-step WalkRounds Guide. The SAQ was administered at baseline and approximately 18 months post-WalkRounds implementation to all caregivers in patient care areas. Results Two of seven hospitals complied with the rigorous WalkRounds approach; hospital A was an academic teaching center and hospital B a community teaching hospital. Of 21 patient care areas, SAQ surveys were received from 62 percent of respondents at baseline and 60 percent post WalkRounds. At baseline, 10 of 21 care areas (48 percent) had safety climate scores below 60 percent, whereas post-WalkRounds three care areas (14 percent) had safety climate scores below 60 percent without improving by 10 points or more. Safety climate scale scores in hospital A were 62 percent at baseline and 77 percent post-WalkRounds (t=2.67, p=.03), and in hospital B were 46 percent at baseline and 56 percent post WalkRounds (t=2.06, p=.06). Main safety issues by category were equipment/facility (A [26 percent] and B [33 percent]) and communication (A [24 percent] and B [18 percent]). Conclusions WalkRounds implementation requires significant organizational will; sustainability requires outstanding project management and leadership engagement. In the patient care areas that rigorously implemented WalkRounds, frontline caregiver assessments of patient safety increased. SAQ results such as safety climate scores facilitate the triage of quality improvement efforts, and provide consensus assessments of frontline caregivers that identify themes for improvement. PMID:18671751

Medical students' situational motivation to participate in simulation based team training is predicted by attitudes to patient safety.

PubMed

Escher, Cecilia; Creutzfeldt, Johan; Meurling, Lisbet; Hedman, Leif; Kjellin, Ann; Felländer-Tsai, Li

2017-02-10

Patient safety education, as well as the safety climate at clinical rotations, has an impact on students' attitudes. We explored medical students' self-reported motivation to participate in simulation-based teamwork training (SBTT), with the hypothesis that high scores in patient safety attitudes would promote motivation to SBTT and that intrinsic motivation would increase after training. In a prospective cohort study we explored Swedish medical students' attitudes to patient safety, their motivation to participate in SBTT and how motivation was affected by the training. The setting was an integrated SBTT course during the surgical semester that focused on non-technical skills and safe treatment of surgical emergencies. Data was collected using the Situational Motivation Scale (SIMS) and the Attitudes to Patient Safety Questionnaire (APSQ). We found a positive correlation between students' individual patient safety attitudes and self-reported motivation (identified regulation) to participate in SBTT. We also found that intrinsic motivation increased after training. Female students in our study scored higher than males regarding some of the APSQ sub-scores and the entire group scored higher or on par with comparable international samples. In order to enable safe practice and professionalism in healthcare, students' engagement in patient safety education is important. Our finding that students' patient safety attitudes show a positive correlation to motivation and that intrinsic motivation increases after training underpins patient safety climate and integrated teaching of patient safety issues at medical schools in order to help students develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes required for safe practice.

Burnout in the NICU setting and its relation to safety culture

PubMed Central

Profit, Jochen; Sharek, Paul J; Amspoker, Amber B; Kowalkowski, Mark A; Nisbet, Courtney C; Thomas, Eric J; Chadwick, Whitney A; Sexton, J Bryan

2014-01-01

Background Burnout is widespread among healthcare providers and is associated with adverse safety behaviours, operational and clinical outcomes. Little is known with regard to the explanatory links between burnout and these adverse outcomes. Objectives (1) Test the psychometric properties of a brief four-item burnout scale, (2) Provide neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) burnout and resilience benchmarking data across different units and caregiver types, (3) Examine the relationships between caregiver burnout and patient safety culture. Research design Cross-sectional survey study. Subjects Nurses, nurse practitioners, respiratory care providers and physicians in 44 NICUs. Measures Caregiver assessments of burnout and safety culture. Results Of 3294 administered surveys, 2073 were returned for an overall response rate of 62.9%. The percentage of respondents in each NICU reporting burnout ranged from 7.5% to 54.4% (mean=25.9%, SD=10.8). The four-item burnout scale was reliable (α=0.85) and appropriate for aggregation (intra-class correlation coefficient−2=0.95). Burnout varied significantly between NICUs, p<0.0001, but was less prevalent in physicians (mean=15.1%, SD=19.6) compared with non-physicians (mean=26.9%, SD=11.4, p=0.0004). NICUs with more burnout had lower teamwork climate (r=−0.48, p=0.001), safety climate (r=−0.40, p=0.01), job satisfaction (r=−0.64, p<0.0001), perceptions of management (r=−0.50, p=0.0006) and working conditions (r=−0.45, p=0.002). Conclusions NICU caregiver burnout appears to have ‘climate-like’ features, is prevalent, and associated with lower perceptions of patient safety culture. PMID:24742780

Relationships among Safety Climate, Safety Behavior, and Safety Outcomes for Ethnic Minority Construction Workers.

PubMed

Lyu, Sainan; Hon, Carol K H; Chan, Albert P C; Wong, Francis K W; Javed, Arshad Ali

2018-03-09

In many countries, it is common practice to attract and employ ethnic minority (EM) or migrant workers in the construction industry. This primarily occurs in order to alleviate the labor shortage caused by an aging workforce with a lack of new entrants. Statistics show that EM construction workers are more likely to have occupational fatal and nonfatal injuries than their local counterparts; however, the mechanism underlying accidents and injuries in this vulnerable population has been rarely examined. This study aims to investigate relationships among safety climate, safety behavior, and safety outcomes for EM construction workers. To this end, a theoretical research model was developed based on a comprehensive review of the current literature. In total, 289 valid questionnaires were collected face-to-face from 223 Nepalese construction workers and 56 Pakistani construction workers working on 15 construction sites in Hong Kong. Structural equation modelling was employed to validate the constructs and test the hypothesized model. Results show that there were significant positive relationships between safety climate and safety behaviors, and significant negative relationships between safety behaviors and safety outcomes for EM construction workers. This research contributes to the literature regarding EM workers by providing empirical evidence of the mechanisms by which safety climate affects safety behaviors and outcomes. It also provides insights in order to help the key stakeholders formulate safety strategies for EM workers in many areas where numerous EM workers are employed, such as in the U.S., the UK, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Middle East.

Climate Change and Food Security: Health Impacts in Developed Countries

PubMed Central

Hooper, Lee; Abdelhamid, Asmaa; Bentham, Graham; Boxall, Alistair B.A.; Draper, Alizon; Fairweather-Tait, Susan; Hulme, Mike; Hunter, Paul R.; Nichols, Gordon; Waldron, Keith W.

2012-01-01

Background: Anthropogenic climate change will affect global food production, with uncertain consequences for human health in developed countries. Objectives: We investigated the potential impact of climate change on food security (nutrition and food safety) and the implications for human health in developed countries. Methods: Expert input and structured literature searches were conducted and synthesized to produce overall assessments of the likely impacts of climate change on global food production and recommendations for future research and policy changes. Results: Increasing food prices may lower the nutritional quality of dietary intakes, exacerbate obesity, and amplify health inequalities. Altered conditions for food production may result in emerging pathogens, new crop and livestock species, and altered use of pesticides and veterinary medicines, and affect the main transfer mechanisms through which contaminants move from the environment into food. All these have implications for food safety and the nutritional content of food. Climate change mitigation may increase consumption of foods whose production reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Impacts may include reduced red meat consumption (with positive effects on saturated fat, but negative impacts on zinc and iron intake) and reduced winter fruit and vegetable consumption. Developed countries have complex structures in place that may be used to adapt to the food safety consequences of climate change, although their effectiveness will vary between countries, and the ability to respond to nutritional challenges is less certain. Conclusions: Climate change will have notable impacts upon nutrition and food safety in developed countries, but further research is necessary to accurately quantify these impacts. Uncertainty about future impacts, coupled with evidence that climate change may lead to more variable food quality, emphasizes the need to maintain and strengthen existing structures and policies to regulate food production, monitor food quality and safety, and respond to nutritional and safety issues that arise. PMID:23124134

Climate change and food security: health impacts in developed countries.

PubMed

Lake, Iain R; Hooper, Lee; Abdelhamid, Asmaa; Bentham, Graham; Boxall, Alistair B A; Draper, Alizon; Fairweather-Tait, Susan; Hulme, Mike; Hunter, Paul R; Nichols, Gordon; Waldron, Keith W

2012-11-01

Anthropogenic climate change will affect global food production, with uncertain consequences for human health in developed countries. We investigated the potential impact of climate change on food security (nutrition and food safety) and the implications for human health in developed countries. Expert input and structured literature searches were conducted and synthesized to produce overall assessments of the likely impacts of climate change on global food production and recommendations for future research and policy changes. Increasing food prices may lower the nutritional quality of dietary intakes, exacerbate obesity, and amplify health inequalities. Altered conditions for food production may result in emerging pathogens, new crop and livestock species, and altered use of pesticides and veterinary medicines, and affect the main transfer mechanisms through which contaminants move from the environment into food. All these have implications for food safety and the nutritional content of food. Climate change mitigation may increase consumption of foods whose production reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Impacts may include reduced red meat consumption (with positive effects on saturated fat, but negative impacts on zinc and iron intake) and reduced winter fruit and vegetable consumption. Developed countries have complex structures in place that may be used to adapt to the food safety consequences of climate change, although their effectiveness will vary between countries, and the ability to respond to nutritional challenges is less certain. Climate change will have notable impacts upon nutrition and food safety in developed countries, but further research is necessary to accurately quantify these impacts. Uncertainty about future impacts, coupled with evidence that climate change may lead to more variable food quality, emphasizes the need to maintain and strengthen existing structures and policies to regulate food production, monitor food quality and safety, and respond to nutritional and safety issues that arise.

Staff Turnover in Assertive Community Treatment (Act) Teams: The Role of Team Climate.

PubMed

Zhu, Xi; Wholey, Douglas R; Cain, Cindy; Natafgi, Nabil

2017-03-01

Staff turnover in Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) teams can result in interrupted services and diminished support for clients. This paper examines the effect of team climate, defined as team members' shared perceptions of their work environment, on turnover and individual outcomes that mediate the climate-turnover relationship. We focus on two climate dimensions: safety and quality climate and constructive conflict climate. Using survey data collected from 26 ACT teams, our analyses highlight the importance of safety and quality climate in reducing turnover, and job satisfaction as the main mediator linking team climate to turnover. The findings offer practical implications for team management.

Testing the effects of safety climate and disruptive children behavior on school bus drivers performance: A multilevel model.

PubMed

Zohar, Dov; Lee, Jin

2016-10-01

The study was designed to test a multilevel path model whose variables exert opposing effects on school bus drivers' performance. Whereas departmental safety climate was expected to improve driving safety, the opposite was true for in-vehicle disruptive children behavior. The driving safety path in this model consists of increasing risk-taking practices starting with safety shortcuts leading to rule violations and to near-miss events. The study used a sample of 474 school bus drivers in rural areas, driving children to school and school-related activities. Newly developed scales for measuring predictor, mediator and outcome variables were validated with video data taken from inner and outer cameras, which were installed in 29 buses. Results partially supported the model by indicating that group-level safety climate and individual-level children distraction exerted opposite effects on the driving safety path. Furthermore, as hypothesized, children disruption moderated the strength of the safety rule violation-near miss relationship, resulting in greater strength under high disruptiveness. At the same time, the hypothesized interaction between the two predictor variables was not supported. Theoretical and practical implications for studying safety climate in general and distracted driving in particular for professional drivers are discussed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Safety climate in OHSAS 18001-certified organisations: antecedents and consequences of safety behaviour.

PubMed

Fernández-Muñiz, Beatriz; Montes-Peón, José Manuel; Vázquez-Ordás, Camilo José

2012-03-01

The occupational health and safety standard OHSAS 18001 has gained considerable acceptance worldwide, and firms from diverse sectors and of varying sizes have implemented it. Despite this, very few studies have analysed safety management or the safety climate in OHSAS 18001-certified organisations. The current work aims to analyse the safety climate in these organisations, identify its dimensions, and propose and test a structural equation model that will help determine the antecedents and consequences of employees' safety behaviour. For this purpose, the authors carry out an empirical study using a sample of 131 OHSAS 18001-certified organisations located in Spain. The results show that management's commitment, and particularly communication, have an effect on safety behaviour and on safety performance, employee satisfaction, and firm competitiveness. These findings are particularly important for management since they provide evidence about the factors that should be encouraged to reduce risks and improve performance in this type of organisation. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Heteronormativity, School Climates, and Perceived Safety for Gender Nonconforming Peers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toomey, Russell B.; McGuire, Jenifer K.; Russell, Stephen T.

2012-01-01

Students' perceptions of their school climates are associated with psychosocial and academic adjustment. The present study examined the role of school strategies to promote safety in predicting students' perceptions of safety for gender nonconforming peers among 1415 students in 28 high schools. Using multilevel modeling techniques, we examined…

How prevalent are hazardous attitudes among orthopaedic surgeons?

PubMed

Bruinsma, Wendy E; Becker, Stéphanie J E; Guitton, Thierry G; Kadzielski, John; Ring, David

2015-05-01

So-called "hazardous attitudes" (macho, impulsive, antiauthority, resignation, invulnerable, and confident) were identified by the Federal Aviation Administration and the Canadian Air Transport Administration as contributing to road traffic incidents among college-aged drivers and felt to be useful for the prevention of aviation accidents. The concept of hazardous attitudes may also be useful in understanding adverse events in surgery, but it has not been widely studied. We surveyed a cohort of orthopaedic surgeons to determine the following: (1) What is the prevalence of hazardous attitudes in a large cohort of orthopaedic surgeons? (2) Do practice setting and/or demographics influence variation in hazardous attitudes in our cohort of surgeons? (3) Do surgeons feel they work in a climate that promotes patient safety? We asked the members of the Science of Variation Group-fully trained, practicing orthopaedic and trauma surgeons from around the world-to complete a questionnaire validated in college-aged drivers measuring six attitudes associated with a greater likelihood of collision and used by pilots to assess and teach aviation safety. We accepted this validation as applicable to surgeons and modified the questionnaire accordingly. We also asked them to complete the Modified Safety Climate Questionnaire, a questionnaire assessing the absence of a safety climate that is based on the patient safety cultures in healthcare organizations instrument. Three hundred sixty-four orthopaedic surgeons participated, representing a 47% response rate of those with correct email addresses who were invited. Thirty-eight percent (137 of 364 surgeons) had at least one score that would have been considered dangerously high in pilots (> 20), including 102 with dangerous levels of macho (28%) and 41 with dangerous levels of self-confidence (11%). After accounting for possible confounding variables, the variables most closely associated with a macho attitude deemed hazardous in pilots were supervision of surgical trainees in the operating room (p = 0.003); location of practice in Canada (p = 0.059), Europe (p = 0.021), and the United States (p = 0.005); and being an orthopaedic trauma surgeon (p = 0.046) (when compared with general orthopaedic surgeons), but accounted for only 5.3% of the variance (p < 0.001). On average, 19% of surgeon responses to the Modified Safety Climate Questionnaire implied absence of a safety climate. Hazardous attitudes are common among orthopaedic surgeons and relate in small part to demographics and practice setting. Future studies should further validate the measure of hazardous attitudes among surgeons and determine if they are associated with preventable adverse events. We agree with aviation safety experts that awareness of amelioration of such attitudes might improve safety in all complex, high-risk endeavors, including surgery-a line of thinking that merits additional research.

A dissonant scale: stress recognition in the SAQ.

PubMed

Taylor, Jennifer A; Pandian, Ravi

2013-07-31

Our previous analyses using the Stress Recognition subscale of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) resulted in significant effect estimates with equally opposing explanations. We suspected construct validity issues and investigated such using our own data and correlation matrices of previous published studies. The correlation matrices for each of the SAQ subscales from two previous studies by Speroff and Taylor were replicated and compared. The SAS Proc Factor procedure and the PRIORS = SMC option were used to perform Common Factor Analysis. The correlation matrices of both studies were very similar. Teamwork, Safety Climate, Job Satisfaction, Perceptions of Management and Working Conditions were well-correlated. The correlations ranged from 0.53 to 0.76. For Stress Recognition correlations ranged from -0.15 to 0.03. Common Factor Analysis confirmed the isolation of Stress Recognition. CFA returned a strong one-factor model that explained virtually all of the communal variance. Stress Recognition loaded poorly on this factor in both instances, and the CFA indicated that 96.4-100.0% of the variance associated with Stress Recognition was unique to that subscale, and not shared with the other 5 subscales. We conclude that the Stress Recognition subscale does not fit into the overall safety climate construct the SAQ intended to reflect. We recommend that this domain be omitted from overall safety climate scale score calculations, and clearly identified as an important yet distinct organizational construct. We suggest that this subscale be investigated for its true meaning, characterized as such, and findings conveyed to SAQ end users. We make no argument against Stress Recognition as an important organizational metric, rather we suggest that as a stand-alone construct its current packaging within the SAQ may be misleading for those intent on intervention development and evaluation in healthcare settings if they interpret Stress Recognition results as emblematic of safety climate.

Reaping the benefits of task conflict in teams: the critical role of team psychological safety climate.

PubMed

Bradley, Bret H; Postlethwaite, Bennett E; Klotz, Anthony C; Hamdani, Maria R; Brown, Kenneth G

2012-01-01

Past research suggests that task conflict may improve team performance under certain conditions; however, we know little about these specific conditions. On the basis of prior theory and research on conflict in teams, we argue that a climate of psychological safety is one specific context under which task conflict will improve team performance. Using evidence from 117 project teams, the present research found that psychological safety climate moderates the relationship between task conflict and performance. Specifically, task conflict and team performance were positively associated under conditions of high psychological safety. The results support the conclusion that psychological safety facilitates the performance benefits of task conflict in teams. Theoretical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Labor unions and safety climate: perceived union safety values and retail employee safety outcomes.

PubMed

Sinclair, Robert R; Martin, James E; Sears, Lindsay E

2010-09-01

Although trade unions have long been recognized as a critical advocate for employee safety and health, safety climate research has not paid much attention to the role unions play in workplace safety. We proposed a multiple constituency model of workplace safety which focused on three central safety stakeholders: top management, ones' immediate supervisor, and the labor union. Safety climate research focuses on management and supervisors as key stakeholders, but has not considered whether employee perceptions about the priority their union places on safety contributes contribute to safety outcomes. We addressed this gap in the literature by investigating unionized retail employee (N=535) perceptions about the extent to which their top management, immediate supervisors, and union valued safety. Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that perceived union safety values could be distinguished from measures of safety training, workplace hazards, top management safety values, and supervisor values. Structural equation analyses indicated that union safety values influenced safety outcomes through its association with higher safety motivation, showing a similar effect as that of supervisor safety values. These findings highlight the need for further attention to union-focused measures related to workplace safety as well as further study of retail employees in general. We discuss the practical implications of our findings and identify several directions for future safety research. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Relationships among Safety Climate, Safety Behavior, and Safety Outcomes for Ethnic Minority Construction Workers

PubMed Central

Lyu, Sainan; Chan, Albert P. C.; Wong, Francis K. W.

2018-01-01

In many countries, it is common practice to attract and employ ethnic minority (EM) or migrant workers in the construction industry. This primarily occurs in order to alleviate the labor shortage caused by an aging workforce with a lack of new entrants. Statistics show that EM construction workers are more likely to have occupational fatal and nonfatal injuries than their local counterparts; however, the mechanism underlying accidents and injuries in this vulnerable population has been rarely examined. This study aims to investigate relationships among safety climate, safety behavior, and safety outcomes for EM construction workers. To this end, a theoretical research model was developed based on a comprehensive review of the current literature. In total, 289 valid questionnaires were collected face-to-face from 223 Nepalese construction workers and 56 Pakistani construction workers working on 15 construction sites in Hong Kong. Structural equation modelling was employed to validate the constructs and test the hypothesized model. Results show that there were significant positive relationships between safety climate and safety behaviors, and significant negative relationships between safety behaviors and safety outcomes for EM construction workers. This research contributes to the literature regarding EM workers by providing empirical evidence of the mechanisms by which safety climate affects safety behaviors and outcomes. It also provides insights in order to help the key stakeholders formulate safety strategies for EM workers in many areas where numerous EM workers are employed, such as in the U.S., the UK, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Middle East. PMID:29522503

Factors associated with the patient safety climate at a teaching hospital1

PubMed Central

Luiz, Raíssa Bianca; Simões, Ana Lúcia de Assis; Barichello, Elizabeth; Barbosa, Maria Helena

2015-01-01

Objectives: to investigate the association between the scores of the patient safety climate and socio-demographic and professional variables. Methods: an observational, sectional and quantitative study, conducted at a large public teaching hospital. The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire was used, translated and validated for Brazil. Data analysis used the software Statistical Package for Social Sciences. In the bivariate analysis, we used Student's t-test, analysis of variance and Spearman's correlation of (α=0.05). To identify predictors for the safety climate scores, multiple linear regression was used, having the safety climate domain as the main outcome (α=0.01). Results: most participants were women, nursing staff, who worked in direct care to adult patients in critical areas, without a graduate degree and without any other employment. The average and median total score of the instrument corresponded to 61.8 (SD=13.7) and 63.3, respectively. The variable professional performance was found as a factor associated with the safety environment for the domain perception of service management and hospital management (p=0.01). Conclusion: the identification of factors associated with the safety environment permits the construction of strategies for safe practices in the hospitals. PMID:26487138

Causal Relationship Analysis of the Patient Safety Culture Based on Safety Attitudes Questionnaire in Taiwan.

PubMed

Lee, Yii-Ching; Zeng, Pei-Shan; Huang, Chih-Hsuan; Wu, Hsin-Hung

2018-01-01

This study uses the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method to identify critical dimensions of the safety attitudes questionnaire in Taiwan in order to improve the patient safety culture from experts' viewpoints. Teamwork climate, stress recognition, and perceptions of management are three causal dimensions, while safety climate, job satisfaction, and working conditions are receiving dimensions. In practice, improvements on effect-based dimensions might receive little effects when a great amount of efforts have been invested. In contrast, improving a causal dimension not only improves itself but also results in better performance of other dimension(s) directly affected by this particular dimension. Teamwork climate and perceptions of management are found to be the most critical dimensions because they are both causal dimensions and have significant influences on four dimensions apiece. It is worth to note that job satisfaction is the only dimension affected by the other dimensions. In order to effectively enhance the patient safety culture for healthcare organizations, teamwork climate, and perceptions of management should be closely monitored.

Causal Relationship Analysis of the Patient Safety Culture Based on Safety Attitudes Questionnaire in Taiwan

PubMed Central

Zeng, Pei-Shan; Huang, Chih-Hsuan

2018-01-01

This study uses the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method to identify critical dimensions of the safety attitudes questionnaire in Taiwan in order to improve the patient safety culture from experts' viewpoints. Teamwork climate, stress recognition, and perceptions of management are three causal dimensions, while safety climate, job satisfaction, and working conditions are receiving dimensions. In practice, improvements on effect-based dimensions might receive little effects when a great amount of efforts have been invested. In contrast, improving a causal dimension not only improves itself but also results in better performance of other dimension(s) directly affected by this particular dimension. Teamwork climate and perceptions of management are found to be the most critical dimensions because they are both causal dimensions and have significant influences on four dimensions apiece. It is worth to note that job satisfaction is the only dimension affected by the other dimensions. In order to effectively enhance the patient safety culture for healthcare organizations, teamwork climate, and perceptions of management should be closely monitored. PMID:29686825

Measuring School Climate in High Schools: A Focus on Safety, Engagement, and the Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradshaw, Catherine P.; Waasdorp, Tracy E.; Debnam, Katrina J.; Johnson, Sarah Lindstrom

2014-01-01

Background: School climate has been linked to multiple student behavioral, academic, health, and social-emotional outcomes. The US Department of Education (USDOE) developed a 3-factor model of school climate comprised of safety, engagement, and environment. This article examines the factor structure and measurement invariance of the USDOE model.…

Relationships among School Climate, School Safety, and Student Achievement and Well-Being: A Review of the Literature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kutsyuruba, Benjamin; Klinger, Don A.; Hussain, Alicia

2015-01-01

School climate, safety and well-being of students are important antecedents of academic achievement. However, school members do not necessarily experience school climate in the same way; rather, their subjective perceptions of the environment and personal characteristics influence individual outcomes and behaviours. Therefore, a closer look at the…

How Action-Learning Coaches Foster a Climate Conducive to Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gibson, Sara Henderson

2011-01-01

Today's businesses rely on the effective functioning of self-directed work teams to learn how to solve complex problems and take action. A key factor in a team's ability to perform in this manner is a group climate characterized by psychological safety. Psychological safety must often compete with a climate of evaluative pressure frequently found…

A Safe School Climate: A Systemic Approach and the School Counselor

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hernandez, Thomas J.; Seem, Susan R.

2004-01-01

The climate of the school is central to the educational mission of a school (Anderson, 1998; Sherman et al., 1997; Jenkins, 1997; Lockwood, 1997). Anderson surveyed recent school safety research and found that altering a school's internal climate can have a significant positive effect on the feeling of safety in the school community. Gottfredson…

Associations between communication climate and the frequency of medical error reporting among pharmacists within an inpatient setting.

PubMed

Patterson, Mark E; Pace, Heather A; Fincham, Jack E

2013-09-01

Although error-reporting systems enable hospitals to accurately track safety climate through the identification of adverse events, these systems may be underused within a work climate of poor communication. The objective of this analysis is to identify the extent to which perceived communication climate among hospital pharmacists impacts medical error reporting rates. This cross-sectional study used survey responses from more than 5000 pharmacists responding to the 2010 Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC). Two composite scores were constructed for "communication openness" and "feedback and about error," respectively. Error reporting frequency was defined from the survey question, "In the past 12 months, how many event reports have you filled out and submitted?" Multivariable logistic regressions were used to estimate the likelihood of medical error reporting conditional upon communication openness or feedback levels, controlling for pharmacist years of experience, hospital geographic region, and ownership status. Pharmacists with higher communication openness scores compared with lower scores were 40% more likely to have filed or submitted a medical error report in the past 12 months (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.1-1.7; P = 0.004). In contrast, pharmacists with higher communication feedback scores were not any more likely than those with lower scores to have filed or submitted a medical report in the past 12 months (OR, 1.0; 95% CI, 0.8-1.3; P = 0.97). Hospital work climates that encourage pharmacists to freely communicate about problems related to patient safety is conducive to medical error reporting. The presence of feedback infrastructures about error may not be sufficient to induce error-reporting behavior.

Plant hydraulics improves and topography mediates prediction of aspen mortality in southwestern USA.

PubMed

Tai, Xiaonan; Mackay, D Scott; Anderegg, William R L; Sperry, John S; Brooks, Paul D

2017-01-01

Elevated forest mortality has been attributed to climate change-induced droughts, but prediction of spatial mortality patterns remains challenging. We evaluated whether introducing plant hydraulics and topographic convergence-induced soil moisture variation to land surface models (LSM) can help explain spatial patterns of mortality. A scheme predicting plant hydraulic safety loss from soil moisture was developed using field measurements and a plant physiology-hydraulics model, TREES. The scheme was upscaled to Populus tremuloides forests across Colorado, USA, using LSM-modeled and topography-mediated soil moisture, respectively. The spatial patterns of hydraulic safety loss were compared against aerial surveyed mortality. Incorporating hydraulic safety loss raised the explanatory power of mortality by 40% compared to LSM-modeled soil moisture. Topographic convergence was mostly influential in suppressing mortality in low and concave areas, explaining an additional 10% of the variations in mortality for those regions. Plant hydraulics integrated water stress along the soil-plant continuum and was more closely tied to plant physiological response to drought. In addition to the well-recognized topo-climate influence due to elevation and aspect, we found evidence that topographic convergence mediates tree mortality in certain parts of the landscape that are low and convergent, likely through influences on plant-available water. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

Development of a multilevel health and safety climate survey tool within a mining setting.

PubMed

Parker, Anthony W; Tones, Megan J; Ritchie, Gabrielle E

2017-09-01

This study aimed to design, implement and evaluate the reliability and validity of a multifactorial and multilevel health and safety climate survey (HSCS) tool with utility in the Australian mining setting. An 84-item questionnaire was developed and pilot tested on a sample of 302 Australian miners across two open cut sites. A 67-item, 10 factor solution was obtained via exploratory factor analysis (EFA) representing prioritization and attitudes to health and safety across multiple domains and organizational levels. Each factor demonstrated a high level of internal reliability, and a series of ANOVAs determined a high level of consistency in responses across the workforce, and generally irrespective of age, experience or job category. Participants tended to hold favorable views of occupational health and safety (OH&S) climate at the management, supervisor, workgroup and individual level. The survey tool demonstrated reliability and validity for use within an open cut Australian mining setting and supports a multilevel, industry specific approach to OH&S climate. Findings suggested a need for mining companies to maintain high OH&S standards to minimize risks to employee health and safety. Future research is required to determine the ability of this measure to predict OH&S outcomes and its utility within other mine settings. As this tool integrates health and safety, it may have benefits for assessment, monitoring and evaluation in the industry, and improving the understanding of how health and safety climate interact at multiple levels to influence OH&S outcomes. Copyright © 2017 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development and psychometric testing of an instrument to measure safety climate perceptions in community pharmacy.

PubMed

Newham, Rosemary; Bennie, Marion; Maxwell, David; Watson, Anne; de Wet, Carl; Bowie, Paul

2014-12-01

A positive and strong safety culture underpins effective learning from patient safety incidents in health care, including the community pharmacy (CP) setting. To build this culture, perceptions of safety climate must be measured with context-specific and reliable instruments. No pre-existing instruments were specifically designed or suitable for CP within Scotland. We therefore aimed to develop a psychometrically sound instrument to measure perceptions of safety climate within Scottish CPs. The first stage, development of a preliminary instrument, comprised three steps: (i) a literature review; (ii) focus group feedback; and (iii) content validation. The second stage, psychometric testing, consisted of three further steps: (iv) a pilot survey; (v) a survey of all CP staff within a single health board in NHS Scotland; and (vi) application of statistical methods, including principal components analysis and calculation of Cronbach's reliability coefficients, to derive the final instrument. The preliminary questionnaire was developed through a process of literature review and feedback. This questionnaire was completed by staff in 50 CPs from the 131 (38%) sampled. 250 completed questionnaires were suitable for analysis. Psychometric evaluation resulted in a 30-item instrument with five positively correlated safety climate factors: leadership, teamwork, safety systems, communication and working conditions. Reliability coefficients were satisfactory for the safety climate factors (α > 0.7) and overall (α = 0.93). The robust nature of the technical design and testing process has resulted in the development of an instrument with sufficient psychometric properties, which can be implemented in the community pharmacy setting in NHS Scotland. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Central Sensitization and Perceived Indoor Climate among Workers with Chronic Upper-Limb Pain: Cross-Sectional Study

PubMed Central

Jakobsen, Markus D.; Jay, Kenneth; Persson, Roger; Andersen, Lars L.

2015-01-01

Monitoring of indoor climate is an essential part of occupational health and safety. While questionnaires are commonly used for surveillance, not all workers may perceive an identical indoor climate similarly. The aim of this study was to evaluate perceived indoor climate among workers with chronic pain compared with pain-free colleagues and to determine the influence of central sensitization on this perception. Eighty-two male slaughterhouse workers, 49 with upper-limb chronic pain and 33 pain-free controls, replied to a questionnaire with 13 items of indoor climate complaints. Pressure pain threshold (PPT) was measured in muscles of the arm, shoulder, and lower leg. Cross-sectional associations were determined using general linear models controlled for age, smoking, and job position. The number of indoor climate complaints was twice as high among workers with chronic pain compared with pain-free controls (1.8 [95% CI: 1.3–2.3] versus 0.9 [0.4–1.5], resp.). PPT of the nonpainful leg muscle was negatively associated with the number of complaints. Workers with chronic pain reported more indoor climate complaints than pain-free controls despite similar actual indoor climate. Previous studies that did not account for musculoskeletal pain in questionnaire assessment of indoor climate may be biased. Central sensitization likely explains the present findings. PMID:26425368

Swedish translation and psychometric testing of the safety attitudes questionnaire (operating room version).

PubMed

Göras, Camilla; Wallentin, Fan Yang; Nilsson, Ulrica; Ehrenberg, Anna

2013-03-19

Tens of millions of patients worldwide suffer from avoidable disabling injuries and death every year. Measuring the safety climate in health care is an important step in improving patient safety. The most commonly used instrument to measure safety climate is the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). The aim of the present study was to establish the validity and reliability of the translated version of the SAQ. The SAQ was translated and adapted to the Swedish context. The survey was then carried out with 374 respondents in the operating room (OR) setting. Data was received from three hospitals, a total of 237 responses. Cronbach's alpha and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to evaluate the reliability and validity of the instrument. The Cronbach's alpha values for each of the factors of the SAQ ranged between 0.59 and 0.83. The CFA and its goodness-of-fit indices (SRMR 0.055, RMSEA 0.043, CFI 0.98) showed good model fit. Intercorrelations between the factors safety climate, teamwork climate, job satisfaction, perceptions of management, and working conditions showed moderate to high correlation with each other. The factor stress recognition had no significant correlation with teamwork climate, perception of management, or job satisfaction. Therefore, the Swedish translation and psychometric testing of the SAQ (OR version) has good construct validity. However, the reliability analysis suggested that some of the items need further refinement to establish sound internal consistency. As suggested by previous research, the SAQ is potentially a useful tool for evaluating safety climate. However, further psychometric testing is required with larger samples to establish the psychometric properties of the instrument for use in Sweden.

Measuring school climate in high schools: a focus on safety, engagement, and the environment.

PubMed

Bradshaw, Catherine P; Waasdorp, Tracy E; Debnam, Katrina J; Johnson, Sarah Lindstrom

2014-09-01

School climate has been linked to multiple student behavioral, academic, health, and social-emotional outcomes. The US Department of Education (USDOE) developed a 3-factor model of school climate comprised of safety, engagement, and environment. This article examines the factor structure and measurement invariance of the USDOE model. Drawing upon 2 consecutive waves of data from over 25,000 high school students (46% minority), a series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses examined the fit of the Maryland Safe and Supportive Schools Climate Survey with the USDOE model. The results indicated adequate model fit with the theorized 3-factor model of school climate, which included 13 subdomains: safety (perceived safety, bullying and aggression, and drug use); engagement (connection to teachers, student connectedness, academic engagement, school connectedness, equity, and parent engagement); environment (rules and consequences, physical comfort, and support, disorder). We also found consistent measurement invariance with regard to student sex, grade level, and ethnicity. School-level interclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.04 to .10 for the scales. Findings supported the USDOE 3-factor model of school climate and suggest measurement invariance and high internal consistency of the 3 scales and 13 subdomains. These results suggest the 56-item measure may be a potentially efficient, yet comprehensive measure of school climate. © 2014, American School Health Association.

Living up to safety values in health care: the effect of leader behavioral integrity on occupational safety.

PubMed

Halbesleben, Jonathon R B; Leroy, Hannes; Dierynck, Bart; Simons, Tony; Savage, Grant T; McCaughey, Deirdre; Leon, Matthew R

2013-10-01

While previous research has identified that leaders' safety expectations and safety actions are important in fostering occupational safety, research has yet to demonstrate the importance of leader alignment between safety expectations and actions for improving occupational safety. We build on safety climate literature and theory on behavioral integrity to better understand the relationship between the leader's behavioral integrity regarding safety and work-related injuries. In a time-lagged study of 658 nurses, we find that behavioral integrity for high safety values is positively associated with greater reporting of fewer and less severe occupational injuries. The effects of behavioral integrity regarding safety can be better understood through the mediating mechanisms of safety compliance and psychological safety toward one's supervisor. We discuss the implications of our findings for future research on safety climate.

Probable Maximum Precipitation in the U.S. Pacific Northwest in a Changing Climate: PMP UNDER CLIMATE CHANGE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Xiaodong; Hossain, Faisal; Leung, L. Ruby

The safety of large and aging water infrastructures is gaining attention in water management given the accelerated rate of change in landscape, climate and society. In current engineering practice, such safety is ensured by the design of infrastructure for the Probable Maximum Precipitation (PMP). Recently, several physics-based numerical modeling approaches have been proposed to modernize the conventional and ad hoc PMP estimation approach. However, the underlying physics has not been investigated and thus differing PMP estimates are obtained without clarity on their interpretation. In this study, we present a hybrid approach that takes advantage of both traditional engineering wisdom andmore » modern climate science to estimate PMP for current and future climate conditions. The traditional PMP approach is improved and applied to outputs from an ensemble of five CMIP5 models. This hybrid approach is applied in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) to produce ensemble PMP estimation for the historical (1970-2016) and future (2050-2099) time periods. The new historical PMP estimates are verified by comparing them with the traditional estimates. PMP in the PNW will increase by 50% of the current level by 2099 under the RCP8.5 scenario. Most of the increase is caused by warming, which mainly affects moisture availability, with minor contributions from changes in storm efficiency in the future. Moist track change tends to reduce the future PMP. Compared with extreme precipitation, ensemble PMP exhibits higher internal variation. Thus high-quality data of both precipitation and related meteorological fields (temperature, wind fields) are required to reduce uncertainties in the ensemble PMP estimates.« less

Effects of a team-based assessment and intervention on patient safety culture in general practice: an open randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Hoffmann, B; Müller, V; Rochon, J; Gondan, M; Müller, B; Albay, Z; Weppler, K; Leifermann, M; Mießner, C; Güthlin, C; Parker, D; Hofinger, G; Gerlach, F M

2014-01-01

The measurement of safety culture in healthcare is generally regarded as a first step towards improvement. Based on a self-assessment of safety culture, the Frankfurt Patient Safety Matrix (FraTrix) aims to enable healthcare teams to improve safety culture in their organisations. In this study we assessed the effects of FraTrix on safety culture in general practice. We conducted an open randomised controlled trial in 60 general practices. FraTrix was applied over a period of 9 months during three facilitated team sessions in intervention practices. At baseline and after 12 months, scores were allocated for safety culture as expressed in practice structure and processes (indicators), in safety climate and in patient safety incident reporting. The primary outcome was the indicator error management. During the team sessions, practice teams reflected on their safety culture and decided on about 10 actions per practice to improve it. After 12 months, no significant differences were found between intervention and control groups in terms of error management (competing probability=0.48, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.63, p=0.823), 11 further patient safety culture indicators and safety climate scales. Intervention practices showed better reporting of patient safety incidents, reflected in a higher number of incident reports (mean (SD) 4.85 (4.94) vs 3.10 (5.42), p=0.045) and incident reports of higher quality (scoring 2.27 (1.93) vs 1.49 (1.67), p=0.038) than control practices. Applied as a team-based instrument to assess safety culture, FraTrix did not lead to measurable improvements in error management. Comparable studies with more positive results had less robust study designs. In future research, validated combined methods to measure safety culture will be required. In addition, more attention should be paid to evaluation of process parameters. Implemented actions and incident reporting may be more appropriate target endpoints. German Clinical Trials Register (Deutsches Register Klinischer Studien, DRKS) No. DRKS00000145.

Is there agreement between worker self and supervisor assessment of worker safety performance? An examination in the construction industry.

PubMed

Xia, Nini; Griffin, Mark A; Wang, Xueqing; Liu, Xing; Wang, Dan

2018-06-01

Individual safety performance (behavior) critically influences safety outcomes in high-risk workplaces. Compared to the study of generic work performance on different measurements, few studies have investigated different measurements of safety performance, typically relying on employees' self-reflection of their safety behavior. This research aims to address this limitation by including worker self-reflection and other (i.e., supervisor) assessment of two worker safety performance dimensions, safety compliance and safety participation. A sample of 105 workers and 17 supervisors in 17 groups in the Chinese construction industry participated in this study. Comparisons were made between worker compliance and participation in each measurement, and between workers' and supervisors' assessment of workers' compliance and participation. Multilevel modeling was adopted to test the moderating effects on the worker self-reflection and supervisor-assessment relationship by group safety climate and the work experience of supervisors. Higher levels of safety compliance than participation were found for self-reflection and supervisor assessment. The discrepancy between the two measurements in each safety performance dimension was significant. The work experience of supervisors attenuated the discrepancy between self- and supervisor-assessment of compliance. Contrary to our expectations, the moderating effect of group safety climate was not supported. The discrepancy between worker self- and supervisor-assessment of worker safety performance, thus, suggests the importance of including alternative measurements of safety performance in addition to self-reflection. Lower levels of participation behavior in both raters suggest more research on the motivators of participatory behavior. Practical applications The discrepancy between different raters can lead to negative reactions of ratees, suggesting that managers should be aware of that difference. Assigning experienced supervisors as raters can be effective at mitigating interrater discrepancy and conflicts in the assessment of compliance behavior. Copyright © 2018 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of a patient safety climate survey for Chinese hospitals: cross-national adaptation and psychometric evaluation.

PubMed

Zhu, Junya; Li, Liping; Zhao, Hailei; Han, Guangshu; Wu, Albert W; Weingart, Saul N

2014-10-01

Existing patient safety climate instruments, most of which have been developed in the USA, may not accurately reflect the conditions in the healthcare systems of other countries. To develop and evaluate a patient safety climate instrument for healthcare workers in Chinese hospitals. Based on a review of existing instruments, expert panel review, focus groups and cognitive interviews, we developed items relevant to patient safety climate in Chinese hospitals. The draft instrument was distributed to 1700 hospital workers from 54 units in six hospitals in five Chinese cities between July and October 2011, and 1464 completed surveys were received. We performed exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and estimated internal consistency reliability, within-unit agreement, between-unit variation, unit-mean reliability, correlation between multi-item composites, and association between the composites and two single items of perceived safety. The final instrument included 34 items organised into nine composites: institutional commitment to safety, unit management support for safety, organisational learning, safety system, adequacy of safety arrangements, error reporting, communication and peer support, teamwork and staffing. All composites had acceptable unit-mean reliabilities (≥0.74) and within-unit agreement (Rwg ≥0.71), and exhibited significant between-unit variation with intraclass correlation coefficients ranging from 9% to 21%. Internal consistency reliabilities ranged from 0.59 to 0.88 and were ≥0.70 for eight of the nine composites. Correlations between composites ranged from 0.27 to 0.73. All composites were positively and significantly associated with the two perceived safety items. The Chinese Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Climate demonstrates adequate dimensionality, reliability and validity. The integration of qualitative and quantitative methods is essential to produce an instrument that is culturally appropriate for Chinese hospitals. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Weather and Climate Impacts on Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-04-01

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has an interest in how adverse weather may influence trucking industry practices, and what climate change might mean for future FMCSA efforts to reduce weather-related crashes. Weather condition...

Safety in the c-suite: How chief executive officers influence organizational safety climate and employee injuries.

PubMed

Tucker, Sean; Ogunfowora, Babatunde; Ehr, Dayle

2016-09-01

According to social learning theory, powerful and high status individuals can significantly influence the behaviors of others. In this paper, we propose that chief executive officers (CEOs) indirectly impact frontline injuries through the collective social learning experiences and effort of different groups of organizational actors-including members of the top management team (TMT), organizational supervisors, and frontline employees. We found support for our collective social learning model using data from 2,714 frontline employees, 1,398 supervisors, and 229 members of TMTs in 54 organizations. TMT members' experiences within a CEO-driven TMT safety climate was positively related to organizational supervisors' reports of the broader organizational safety climate and their subsequent collective support for safety (reported by frontline employees). In turn, supervisory support for safety was associated with fewer employee injuries at the individual level. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings for workplace safety research and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Global and Mediterranean climate change: a short summary.

PubMed

Ciardini, Virginia; Contessa, Gian Marco; Falsaperla, Rosaria; Gómez-Amo, José Luis; Meloni, Daniela; Monteleone, Francesco; Pace, Giandomenico; Piacentino, Salvatore; Sferlazzo, Damiano; di Sarra, Alcide

2016-01-01

Observed changes at the global scale. An increase of the annual mean global temperature and changes of other climate parameters have been observed in the last century. The global temperature and the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases are changing at a very fast pace compared to those found in palaeoclimate records. Changes in the Mediterranean. Variations of some climate change indicators can be much larger at the local than at the global scale, and the Mediterranean has been indicated among the regions most sensitive to climate change, also due to the increasing anthropogenic pressure. Model projections for the Mediterranean foresee further warming, droughts, and long-lasting modifications. Regional climate changes impact health and ecosystems, creating new risks, determined not only by weather events, but also by changing exposures and vulnerabilities. These issues, and in particular those regarding occupational safety, have not been sufficiently addressed to date.

Nursing practice environment, job outcomes and safety climate: a structural equation modelling analysis.

PubMed

Dos Santos Alves, Daniela Fernanda; da Silva, Dirceu; de Brito Guirardello, Edinêis

2017-01-01

To assess correlations between the characteristics of the nursing practice environment, job outcomes and safety climate. The nursing practice environment is critical to the well-being of professionals and to patient safety, as highlighted by national and international studies; however, there is a lack of evidence regarding this theme in paediatric units. A cross-sectional study, in two paediatric hospitals in Brazil, was conducted from December 2013 to February 2014. For data collection, we used the Nursing Work Index - Revised, Safety Attitudes Questionnaire - Short Form 2006 and the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and for analysis Spearman's correlation coefficient and structural equation modelling were used. Two hundred and sixty-seven professional nurses participated in the study. Autonomy, control over the work environment and the relationship between nursing and medical staff are factors associated with job outcomes and safety climate and can be considered their predictors. Professional nurses with greater autonomy, good working relationships and control over their work environment have lower levels of emotional exhaustion, higher job satisfaction, less intention of leaving the job and the safety climate is positive. Initiatives to improve the professional practice environment can improve the safety of paediatric patients and the well-being of professional nurses. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

How does patient safety culture in the operating room and post-anesthesia care unit compare to the rest of the hospital?

PubMed

Kaafarani, Haytham M A; Itani, Kamal M F; Rosen, Amy K; Zhao, Shibei; Hartmann, Christine W; Gaba, David M

2009-07-01

A strong patient safety culture in the operating room (OR) and post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) is essential to promote safe care. The Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations (PSCHO) survey was administered to employees at 30 Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals. The survey consisted of 42 close-ended items representing 12 different dimensions of safety. We measured percent problematic response (PPR); higher PPR values reflect weaker safety culture. The "OR/PACU" and the "Other Work Areas" groups' item-specific, dimension-specific, and overall problematic responses were compared. The overall and dimension-specific PPRs were similar between the OR/PACU and the Other Work Areas group (overall: 20.2% and 18.1%, respectively; P = .41). When the 2 groups were compared on an item-by-item level, the OR/PACU staff reported more frequent witnessing of unsafe patient care (PPR 55.1% vs 43.2%; P = .01), and perceived less understanding by senior leadership of clinical care (PPR 28.3% vs 17.1%; P = .01) and less hospital interest in quality of care (PPR 20.4% vs 12.5%; P = .03). Specific areas of safety culture in the OR/PACU were found that should be targeted for improvement.

Does employee safety influence customer satisfaction? Evidence from the electric utility industry.

PubMed

Willis, P Geoffrey; Brown, Karen A; Prussia, Gregory E

2012-12-01

Research on workplace safety has not examined implications for business performance outcomes such as customer satisfaction. In a U.S. electric utility company, we surveyed 821 employees in 20 work groups, and also had access to archival safety data and the results of a customer satisfaction survey (n=341). In geographically-based work units where there were more employee injuries (based on archival records), customers were less satisfied with the service they received. Safety climate, mediated by safety citizenship behaviors (SCBs), added to the predictive power of the group-level model, but these two constructs exerted their influence independently from actual injuries. In combination, two safety-related predictor paths (injuries and climate/SCB) explained 53% of the variance in customer satisfaction. Results offer preliminary evidence that workplace safety influences customer satisfaction, suggesting that there are likely spillover effects between the safety environment and the service environment. Additional research will be needed to assess the specific mechanisms that convert employee injuries into palpable results for customers. Better safety climate and reductions in employee injuries have the potential to offer payoffs in terms of what customers experience. Copyright © 2012 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of Climate Change Effects on Contamination of Cereal Grains with Deoxynivalenol

PubMed Central

Van der Fels-Klerx, H. J.; van Asselt, Esther D.; Madsen, Marianne S.; Olesen, Jørgen E.

2013-01-01

Climate change is expected to aggravate feed and food safety problems of crops; however, quantitative estimates are scarce. This study aimed to estimate impacts of climate change effects on deoxynivalenol contamination of wheat and maize grown in the Netherlands by 2040. Quantitative modelling was applied, considering both direct effects of changing climate on toxin contamination and indirect effects via shifts in crop phenology. Climate change projections for the IPCC A1B emission scenario were used for the scenario period 2031-2050 relative to the baseline period of 1975-1994. Climatic data from two different global and regional climate model combinations were used. A weather generator was applied for downscaling climate data to local conditions. Crop phenology models and prediction models for DON contamination used, each for winter wheat and grain maize. Results showed that flowering and full maturity of both wheat and maize will advance with future climate. Flowering advanced on average 5 and 11 days for wheat, and 7 and 14 days for maize (two climate model combinations). Full maturity was on average 10 and 17 days earlier for wheat, and 19 and 36 days earlier for maize. On the country level, contamination of wheat with deoxynivalenol decreased slightly, but not significantly. Variability between regions was large, and individual regions showed a significant increase in deoxynivalenol concentrations. For maize, an overall decrease in deoxynivalenol contamination was projected, which was significant for one climate model combination, but not significant for the other one. In general, results disagree with previous reported expectations of increased feed and food safety hazards under climate change. This study illustrated the relevance of using quantitative models to estimate the impacts of climate change effects on food safety, and of considering both direct and indirect effects when assessing climate change impacts on crops and related food safety hazards. PMID:24066059

The safety of high-hazard water infrastructures in the U.S. Pacific Northwest in a changing climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, X.; Hossain, F.; Leung, L. R.

2017-12-01

The safety of large and aging water infrastructures is gaining attention in water management given the accelerated rate of change in landscape, climate and society. In current engineering practice, such safety is ensured by the design of infrastructure for the Probable Maximum Precipitation (PMP). Recently, several numerical modeling approaches have been proposed to modernize the conventional and ad hoc PMP estimation approach. However, the underlying physics have not been investigated and thus differing PMP estimates are obtained without clarity on their interpretation. In this study, we present a hybrid approach that takes advantage of both traditional engineering practice and modern climate science to estimate PMP for current and future climate conditions. The traditional PMP approach is improved and applied to five statistically downscaled CMIP5 model outputs, producing an ensemble of PMP estimates in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) during the historical (1970-2016) and future (2050-2099) time periods. The new historical PMP estimates are verified against the traditional estimates. PMP in the PNW will increase by 50%±30% of the current level by 2099 under the RCP8.5 scenario. Most of the increase is caused by warming, which mainly affects moisture availability through increased sea surface temperature, with minor contributions from changes in storm efficiency in the future. Moist track change tends to reduce the future PMP. Compared with extreme precipitation, PMP exhibits higher internal variability. Thus long-time records of high-quality data in both precipitation and related meteorological fields (temperature, wind fields) are required to reduce uncertainties in the ensemble PMP estimates.

Patient safety climate (PSC) perceptions of frontline staff in acute care hospitals: examining the role of ease of reporting, unit norms of openness, and participative leadership.

PubMed

Zaheer, Shahram; Ginsburg, Liane; Chuang, You-Ta; Grace, Sherry L

2015-01-01

Increased awareness regarding the importance of patient safety issues has led to the proliferation of theoretical conceptualizations, frameworks, and articles that apply safety experiences from high-reliability industries to medical settings. However, empirical research on patient safety and patient safety climate in medical settings still lags far behind the theoretical literature on these topics. The broader organizational literature suggests that ease of reporting, unit norms of openness, and participative leadership might be important variables for improving patient safety. The aim of this empirical study is to examine in detail how these three variables influence frontline staff perceptions of patient safety climate within health care organizations. A cross-sectional study design was used. Data were collected using a questionnaire composed of previously validated scales. The results of the study show that ease of reporting, unit norms of openness, and participative leadership are positively related to staff perceptions of patient safety climate. Health care management needs to involve frontline staff during the development and implementation stages of an error reporting system to ensure staff perceive error reporting to be easy and efficient. Senior and supervisory leaders at health care organizations must be provided with learning opportunities to improve their participative leadership skills so they can better integrate frontline staff ideas and concerns while making safety-related decisions. Finally, health care management must ensure that frontline staff are able to freely communicate safety concerns without fear of being punished or ridiculed by others.

FOREST ECOLOGY. Pervasive drought legacies in forest ecosystems and their implications for carbon cycle models.

PubMed

Anderegg, W R L; Schwalm, C; Biondi, F; Camarero, J J; Koch, G; Litvak, M; Ogle, K; Shaw, J D; Shevliakova, E; Williams, A P; Wolf, A; Ziaco, E; Pacala, S

2015-07-31

The impacts of climate extremes on terrestrial ecosystems are poorly understood but important for predicting carbon cycle feedbacks to climate change. Coupled climate-carbon cycle models typically assume that vegetation recovery from extreme drought is immediate and complete, which conflicts with the understanding of basic plant physiology. We examined the recovery of stem growth in trees after severe drought at 1338 forest sites across the globe, comprising 49,339 site-years, and compared the results with simulated recovery in climate-vegetation models. We found pervasive and substantial "legacy effects" of reduced growth and incomplete recovery for 1 to 4 years after severe drought. Legacy effects were most prevalent in dry ecosystems, among Pinaceae, and among species with low hydraulic safety margins. In contrast, limited or no legacy effects after drought were simulated by current climate-vegetation models. Our results highlight hysteresis in ecosystem-level carbon cycling and delayed recovery from climate extremes. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Vulnerability of global food production to extreme climatic events.

PubMed

Yeni, F; Alpas, H

2017-06-01

It is known that the frequency, intensity or duration of the extreme climatic events have been changing substantially. The ultimate goal of this study was to identify current vulnerabilities of global primary food production against extreme climatic events, and to discuss potential entry points for adaptation planning by means of an explorative vulnerability analysis. Outcomes of this analysis were demonstrated as a composite index where 118 country performances in maintaining safety of food production were compared and ranked against climate change. In order to better interpret the results, cluster analysis technique was used as a tool to group the countries based on their vulnerability index (VI) scores. Results suggested that one sixth of the countries analyzed were subject to high level of exposure (0.45-1), one third to high to very high level of sensitivity (0.41-1) and low to moderate level of adaptive capacity (0-0.59). Proper adaptation strategies for reducing the microbial and chemical contamination of food products, soil and waters on the field were proposed. Finally, availability of data on food safety management systems and occurrence of foodborne outbreaks with global coverage were proposed as key factors for improving the robustness of future vulnerability assessments. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving teamwork: impact of structured interdisciplinary rounds on a hospitalist unit.

PubMed

O'Leary, Kevin J; Haviley, Corinne; Slade, Maureen E; Shah, Hiren M; Lee, Jungwha; Williams, Mark V

2011-02-01

Effective collaboration and teamwork is essential in providing safe and effective care. Research reveals deficiencies in teamwork on medical units involving hospitalists. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of an intervention, Structured Inter-Disciplinary Rounds (SIDR), on nurses' ratings of collaboration and teamwork. The study was a controlled trial involving an intervention and control hospitalist unit. The intervention, SIDR, combined a structured format for communication with a forum for regular interdisciplinary meetings. We asked nurses to rate the quality of communication and collaboration with hospitalists using a 5-point ordinal scale. We also assessed teamwork and safety climate using a validated instrument. Multivariable regression analyses were used to assess the impact on length of stay (LOS) and cost using both a concurrent and historic control. A total of 49 of 58 (84%) nurses completed surveys. A larger percentage of nurses rated the quality of communication and collaboration with hospitalists as high or very high on the intervention unit compared to the control unit (80% vs. 54%; P = 0.05). Nurses also rated the teamwork and safety climate significantly higher on the intervention unit (P = 0.008 and P = 0.03 for teamwork and safety climate, respectively). Multivariable analyses demonstrated no difference in the adjusted LOS and an inconsistent effect on cost. SIDR had a positive effect on nurses' ratings of collaboration and teamwork on a hospitalist unit, yet no impact on LOS and cost. Further study is required to assess the impact of SIDR on patient safety measures. Copyright © 2010 Society of Hospital Medicine.

An exploration of workplace social capital as an antecedent of occupational safety and health climate and outcomes in the Chinese education sector.

PubMed

Tang, Jessica Janice; Leka, Stavroula; Hunt, Nigel; MacLennan, Sara

2014-07-01

It is widely acknowledged that teachers are at greater risk of work-related health problems. At the same time, employee perceptions of different dimensions of organizational climate can influence their attitudes, performance, and well-being at work. This study applied and extended a safety climate model in the context of the education sector in Hong Kong. Apart from safety considerations alone, the study included occupational health considerations and social capital and tested their relationships with occupational safety and health (OSH) outcomes. Seven hundred and four Hong Kong teachers completed a range of questionnaires exploring social capital, OSH climate, OSH knowledge, OSH performance (compliance and participation), general health, and self-rated health complaints and injuries. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the relationships between predictive and outcome variables. SEM analysis revealed a high level of goodness of fit, and the hypothesized model including social capital yielded a better fit than the original model. Social capital, OSH climate, and OSH performance were determinants of both positive and negative outcome variables. In addition, social capital not only significantly predicted general health directly, but also had a predictive effect on the OSH climate-behavior-outcome relationship. This study makes a contribution to the workplace social capital and OSH climate literature by empirically assessing their relationship in the Chinese education sector.

Probable Maximum Precipitation in the U.S. Pacific Northwest in a Changing Climate

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Xiaodong; Hossain, Faisal; Leung, Lai-Yung

2017-12-22

The safety of large and aging water infrastructures is gaining attention in water management given the accelerated rate of change in landscape, climate and society. In current engineering practice, such safety is ensured by the design of infrastructure for the Probable Maximum Precipitation (PMP). Recently, several physics-based numerical modeling approaches have been proposed to modernize the conventional and ad hoc PMP estimation approach. However, the underlying physics has not been investigated and thus differing PMP estimates are obtained without clarity on their interpretation. In this study, we present a hybrid approach that takes advantage of both traditional engineering wisdom andmore » modern climate science to estimate PMP for current and future climate conditions. The traditional PMP approach is improved and applied to outputs from an ensemble of five CMIP5 models. This hybrid approach is applied in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) to produce ensemble PMP estimation for the historical (1970-2016) and future (2050-2099) time periods. The new historical PMP estimates are verified by comparing them with the traditional estimates. PMP in the PNW will increase by 50% of the current level by 2099 under the RCP8.5 scenario. Most of the increase is caused by warming, which mainly affects moisture availability, with minor contributions from changes in storm efficiency in the future. Moist track change tends to reduce the future PMP. Compared with extreme precipitation, ensemble PMP exhibits higher internal variation. Thus high-quality data of both precipitation and related meteorological fields (temperature, wind fields) are required to reduce uncertainties in the ensemble PMP estimates.« less

THE REGRESSION MODEL OF IRAN LIBRARIES ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE

PubMed Central

Jahani, Mohammad Ali; Yaminfirooz, Mousa; Siamian, Hasan

2015-01-01

Background: The purpose of this study was to drawing a regression model of organizational climate of central libraries of Iran’s universities. Methods: This study is an applied research. The statistical population of this study consisted of 96 employees of the central libraries of Iran’s public universities selected among the 117 universities affiliated to the Ministry of Health by Stratified Sampling method (510 people). Climate Qual localized questionnaire was used as research tools. For predicting the organizational climate pattern of the libraries is used from the multivariate linear regression and track diagram. Results: of the 9 variables affecting organizational climate, 5 variables of innovation, teamwork, customer service, psychological safety and deep diversity play a major role in prediction of the organizational climate of Iran’s libraries. The results also indicate that each of these variables with different coefficient have the power to predict organizational climate but the climate score of psychological safety (0.94) plays a very crucial role in predicting the organizational climate. Track diagram showed that five variables of teamwork, customer service, psychological safety, deep diversity and innovation directly effects on the organizational climate variable that contribution of the team work from this influence is more than any other variables. Conclusions: Of the indicator of the organizational climate of climateQual, the contribution of the team work from this influence is more than any other variables that reinforcement of teamwork in academic libraries can be more effective in improving the organizational climate of this type libraries. PMID:26622203

THE REGRESSION MODEL OF IRAN LIBRARIES ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE.

PubMed

Jahani, Mohammad Ali; Yaminfirooz, Mousa; Siamian, Hasan

2015-10-01

The purpose of this study was to drawing a regression model of organizational climate of central libraries of Iran's universities. This study is an applied research. The statistical population of this study consisted of 96 employees of the central libraries of Iran's public universities selected among the 117 universities affiliated to the Ministry of Health by Stratified Sampling method (510 people). Climate Qual localized questionnaire was used as research tools. For predicting the organizational climate pattern of the libraries is used from the multivariate linear regression and track diagram. of the 9 variables affecting organizational climate, 5 variables of innovation, teamwork, customer service, psychological safety and deep diversity play a major role in prediction of the organizational climate of Iran's libraries. The results also indicate that each of these variables with different coefficient have the power to predict organizational climate but the climate score of psychological safety (0.94) plays a very crucial role in predicting the organizational climate. Track diagram showed that five variables of teamwork, customer service, psychological safety, deep diversity and innovation directly effects on the organizational climate variable that contribution of the team work from this influence is more than any other variables. Of the indicator of the organizational climate of climateQual, the contribution of the team work from this influence is more than any other variables that reinforcement of teamwork in academic libraries can be more effective in improving the organizational climate of this type libraries.

Safety and operations of hydrogen fuel infrastructure in northern climates : a collaborative complex systems approach.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-10-07

"This project examined the safety and operation of hydrogen (H2) fueling system infrastructure in : northern climates. A multidisciplinary team lead by the University of Vermont (UVM), : combined with investigators from Zhejiang and Tsinghua Universi...

[Should we establish patient safety leadership walkrounds? A systematic review].

PubMed

Girerd-Genessay, I; Michel, P

2015-10-01

Used for over a decade, patient safety leadership walkrounds (PSLWs) is a managerial method designed to enhance the implementation of safety measures in hospitals. In order to determine the effect of PSLWs in French hospitals, we reviewed the literature on participant perceptions and the impact of PSLW on the overall culture of safety. We conducted a systematic review of articles assessing the impact of PSLWs on the culture of safety (comparative studies) or the perceptions of caregivers and managers (qualitative studies). Five studies investigating safety culture and three studies investigating participant perception were identified. PSLWs were associated with an improvement in safety culture and the overall safety climate. The presence of caregivers during the PSLWs was important to achieve improvement. PSLWs improved the dialogue between caregivers and managers, and improved knowledge on care safety. Some problems concerning managerial PSLW attendance and counter-productive attitudes have occasionally been reported. PSLWs improve safety culture. Their effectiveness depends on the way they are implemented. They should initially be tested in France to ensure their feasibility and acceptability in our healthcare system. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Neighborhood crime and school climate as predictors of elementary school academic quality: a cross-lagged panel analysis.

PubMed

McCoy, Dana Charles; Roy, Amanda L; Sirkman, Gabriel M

2013-09-01

Past research has found negative relationships between neighborhood structural disadvantage and students' academic outcomes. Comparatively little work has evaluated the associations between characteristics of neighborhoods and schools themselves. This study explored the longitudinal, reciprocal relationships between neighborhood crime and school-level academic achievement within 500 urban schools. Results revealed that higher neighborhood crime (and particularly violent crime) predicted decreases in school academic achievement across time. School climate emerged as one possible mechanism within this relationship, with higher neighborhood crime predicting decreases in socioemotional learning and safety, but not academic rigor. All three dimensions of school climate were predictive of changes in academic achievement. Although this research supports a primarily unidirectional hypothesis of neighborhoods' impacts on embedded settings, additional work is needed to understand these relationships using additional conceptualizations of neighborhood climate.

Identifying and addressing the limitations of safety climate surveys.

PubMed

O'Connor, Paul; Buttrey, Samuel E; O'Dea, Angela; Kennedy, Quinn

2011-08-01

There are a variety of qualitative and quantitative tools for measuring safety climate. However, questionnaires are by far the most commonly used methodology. This paper reports the descriptive analysis of a large sample of safety climate survey data (n=110,014) collected over 10 years from U.S. Naval aircrew using the Command Safety Assessment Survey (CSAS). The analysis demonstrated that there was substantial non-random response bias associated with the data (the reverse worded items had a unique pattern of responses, there was a increasing tendency over time to only provide a modal response, the responses to the same item towards the beginning and end of the questionnaire did not correlate as highly as might be expected, and the faster the questionnaire was completed the higher the frequency of modal responses). It is suggested that the non-random responses bias was due to the negative effect on participant motivation of a number of factors (questionnaire design, lack of a belief in the importance of the response, participant fatigue, and questionnaire administration). Researchers must consider the factors that increase the likelihood of non-random measurement error in safety climate survey data and cease to rely on data that are solely collected using a long and complex questionnaire. In the absence of valid and reliable data it will not be possible for organizations to take the measures required to improve safety climate. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Work-related injury factors and safety climate perception in truck drivers.

PubMed

Anderson, Naomi J; Smith, Caroline K; Byrd, Jesse L

2017-08-01

The trucking industry has a high burden of work-related injuries. This study examined factors, such as safety climate perceptions, that may impact injury risk. A random sample of 9800 commercial driver's license holders (CDL) were sent surveys, only 4360 were eligible truck drivers. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression models were developed to describe the population and identify variables associated with work-related injury. 2189 drivers completed the pertinent interview questions. Driving less-than-truckload, daytime sleepiness, pressure to work faster, and having a poor composite score for safety perceptions were all associated with increased likelihood of work-related injury. Positive safety perception score was protective for odds of work-related injury, and increased claim filing when injured. Positive psychological safety climate is associated with decreased likelihood of work-related injury and increased likelihood that a driver injured on the job files a workers' compensation claim. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Risk-adjusted morbidity in teaching hospitals correlates with reported levels of communication and collaboration on surgical teams but not with scale measures of teamwork climate, safety climate, or working conditions.

PubMed

Davenport, Daniel L; Henderson, William G; Mosca, Cecilia L; Khuri, Shukri F; Mentzer, Robert M

2007-12-01

Since the Institute of Medicine patient safety reports, a number of survey-based measures of organizational climate safety factors (OCSFs) have been developed. The goal of this study was to measure the impact of OCSFs on risk-adjusted surgical morbidity and mortality. Surveys were administered to staff on general/vascular surgery services during a year. Surveys included multiitem scales measuring OCSFs. Additionally, perceived levels of communication and collaboration with coworkers were assessed. The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program was used to assess risk-adjusted morbidity and mortality. Correlations between outcomes and OCSFs were calculated and between outcomes and communication/collaboration with attending and resident doctors, nurses, and other providers. Fifty-two sites participated in the survey: 44 Veterans Affairs and 8 academic medical centers. A total of 6,083 surveys were returned, for a response rate of 52%. The OCSF measures of teamwork climate, safety climate, working conditions, recognition of stress effects, job satisfaction, and burnout demonstrated internal validity but did not correlate with risk-adjusted outcomes. Reported levels of communication/collaboration with attending and resident doctors correlated with risk-adjusted morbidity. Survey-based teamwork, safety climate, and working conditions scales are not confirmed to measure organizational factors that influence risk-adjusted surgical outcomes. Reported communication/collaboration with attending and resident doctors on surgical services influenced patient morbidity. This suggests the importance of doctors' coordination and decision-making roles on surgical teams in providing high-quality and safe care. We propose risk-adjusted morbidity as an effective measure of surgical patient safety.

Hospital safety climate and safety behavior: A social exchange perspective.

PubMed

Ancarani, Alessandro; Di Mauro, Carmela; Giammanco, Maria D

Safety climate is considered beneficial to the improvement of hospital safety outcomes. Nevertheless, the relations between two of its key constituents, namely those stemming from leader-subordinate relations and coworker support for safety, are still to be fully ascertained. This article uses the theoretical lens of Social Exchange Theory to study the joint impact of leader-member exchange in the safety sphere and coworker support for safety on safety-related behavior at the hospital ward level. Social exchange constructs are further related to the existence of a shame-/blame-free environment, seen as a potential antecedent of safety behavior. A cross-sectional study including 166 inpatients in hospital wards belonging to 10 public hospitals in Italy was undertaken to test the hypotheses developed. Hypothesized relations have been analyzed through a fully mediated multilevel structural equation model. This methodology allows studying behavior at the individual level, while keeping into account the heterogeneity among hospital specialties. Results suggest that the linkage between leader support for safety and individual safety behavior is mediated by coworker support on safety issues and by the creation of a shame-free environment. These findings call for the creation of a safety climate in which managerial efforts should be directed not only to the provision of new safety resources and the enforcement of safety rules but also to the encouragement of teamwork and freedom to report errors as ways to foster the capacity of the staff to communicate, share, and learn from each other.

Workforce perceptions of hospital safety culture: development and validation of the patient safety climate in healthcare organizations survey.

PubMed

Singer, Sara; Meterko, Mark; Baker, Laurence; Gaba, David; Falwell, Alyson; Rosen, Amy

2007-10-01

To describe the development of an instrument for assessing workforce perceptions of hospital safety culture and to assess its reliability and validity. Primary data collected between March 2004 and May 2005. Personnel from 105 U.S. hospitals completed a 38-item paper and pencil survey. We received 21,496 completed questionnaires, representing a 51 percent response rate. Based on review of existing safety climate surveys, we developed a list of key topics pertinent to maintaining a culture of safety in high-reliability organizations. We developed a draft questionnaire to address these topics and pilot tested it in four preliminary studies of hospital personnel. We modified the questionnaire based on experience and respondent feedback, and distributed the revised version to 42,249 hospital workers. We randomly divided respondents into derivation and validation samples. We applied exploratory factor analysis to responses in the derivation sample. We used those results to create scales in the validation sample, which we subjected to multitrait analysis (MTA). We identified nine constructs, three organizational factors, two unit factors, three individual factors, and one additional factor. Constructs demonstrated substantial convergent and discriminant validity in the MTA. Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranged from 0.50 to 0.89. It is possible to measure key salient features of hospital safety climate using a valid and reliable 38-item survey and appropriate hospital sample sizes. This instrument may be used in further studies to better understand the impact of safety climate on patient safety outcomes.

Assessing safety culture in NICU: psychometric properties of the Italian version of Safety Attitude Questionnaire and result implications.

PubMed

Zenere, Alessandra; Zanolin, M Elisabetta; Negri, Roberta; Moretti, Francesca; Grassi, Mario; Tardivo, Stefano

2016-04-01

Neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) are a high-risk setting. The Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ) is a widely used tool to measure safety culture. The aims of the study are to verify the psychometric properties of the Italian version of SAQ, to evaluate safety culture in the NICUs and to identify improvement interventions. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 6 level III NICUs. The SAQ was translated into Italian and adapted to the context, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to validate the questionnaire. 193 questionnaires were collected. The mean response rate was 59.7% (range 44.5%-95.7%). The answers were analysed according to six factors: f1 - teamwork climate, f2 - safety climate, f3 - job satisfaction, f4 - stress recognition, f5 - perception of management, f6 - working conditions. The CFA indexes were adequate (McDonald's omega indexes varied from 0.74 to 0.94, the SRMR index was equal to 0.79 and the RMSEA index was 0.070, 95% CI = 0.063-0.078). The mean composite score was 57.6 (SD 17.9), ranging between 42.3 and 69.7 on a standardized 100-point scale. We highlighted significant differences among units and professions (P < 0.05). The Italian version of the SAQ proved to be an effective tool to evaluate and compare the safety culture in the NICUs. The obtained scores significantly varied both within and among the NICUs. The organizational and structural characteristics of the involved hospitals probably affect the safety culture perception by the staff. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Perception is reality: How patients contribute to poor workplace safety perceptions.

PubMed

McCaughey, Deirdre; McGhan, Gwen; DelliFraine, Jami L; Brannon, S Diane

2011-01-01

Nurses and aides are among the occupational subgroups with the highest injury rates and workdays lost to illness and injury in North America. Many studies have shown that these incidents frequently happen during provision of patient care. Moreover, health care workplaces are a source of numerous safety risks that contribute to worker injuries. These findings identify health care as a high-risk occupation for employee injury or illness. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among patient care, employee safety perceptions, and employee stress. Using the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Model of Job Stress and Health as a foundation, we developed and tested a conceptual workplace safety climate-stress model that explicates how caring for high-risk patients is a safety stressor that has negative outcomes for health care providers, including poor workplace safety perceptions and increasing stress levels. We introduced the concept of "high-risk patients" and define them as those who put providers at greater risk for injury or illness. Using a nonexperimental survey design, we examined patient types and safety perceptions of health care providers (nurses, aides, and allied health) in an acute care hospital. Health care providers who care for high-risk patients more frequently have poor safety climate perceptions and higher stress levels. Safety climate was found to mediate the relationship between high-risk patients and stress. These findings bring insight into actions health care organizations can pursue to improve health care provider well-being. Recognizing that different patients present different risks and pursuing staffing, training, and equipment to minimize employee risk of injury will help reduce the staggering injury rates experienced by these employees. Moreover, minimizing employee stress over poor workplace safety is achievable through comprehensive workplace safety climate programs that include supervisor, management, and organizational commitment to safety enhancement.

Application of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) in Albanian hospitals: a cross-sectional study

PubMed Central

Gabrani, Adriatik; Hoxha, Adrian; Simaku, Artan; Gabrani, Jonila (Cyco)

2015-01-01

Objective To establish the reliability and validity of the translated version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) by evaluating its psychometric properties and to determine possible differences among nurses and physicians regarding safety attitudes. Design A cross-sectional study utilising the Albanian version of the SAQ and a demographic questionnaire. Setting Four regional hospitals in Albania. Participants 341 healthcare providers, including 132 nurses and 209 doctors. Main outcome measure(s) The translation, construct validity and internal validity of the SAQ. The SAQ includes six scales and 30 items. Results A total of 341 valid questionnaires were returned, for a response rate of 70%. The confirmatory factor analysis and its goodness-of-fit indices (standardised root mean square residual 0.075, root mean square error of approximation 0.044 and comparative fit index 0.97) showed good model fit. The Cronbach's α values for each of the scales of the SAQ ranged from 0.64 to 0.82. The percentage of hospital healthcare workers who had a positive attitude was 60.3% for the teamwork climate, 57.2% for the safety climate, 58.4% for job satisfaction, 37.4% for stress recognition, 59.3% for the perception of management and 49.5% for working conditions. Intercorrelations showed that the subscales had moderate-to-high correlations with one another. Nurses were more hesitant to admit and report errors; only 55% of physicians and 44% of nurses endorsed this statement (χ2=4.9, p=0.02). Moreover, nurses received lower scores on team work compared with doctors (N 45.7 vs D 52.3, p=0.01). Doctors denied the effects of stress and fatigue on their performance (N 46.7 vs D 39.5, p<0.01), neglecting the workload. Conclusions The SAQ is a useful tool for evaluating safety attitudes in Albanian hospitals. In light of the health workforce's poor recognition of stress, establishing patient safety programmes should be a priority among policymakers in Albania. PMID:25877270

Effects of patient safety auditing in hospital care: results of a mixed-method evaluation (part 1).

PubMed

Hanskamp-Sebregts, Mirelle; Zegers, Marieke; Westert, Gert P; Boeijen, Wilma; Teerenstra, Steven; van Gurp, Petra J; Wollersheim, Hub

2018-06-15

To evaluate the effectiveness of internal auditing in hospital care focussed on improving patient safety. A before-and-after mixed-method evaluation study was carried out in eight departments of a university medical center in the Netherlands. Internal auditing and feedback focussed on improving patient safety. The effect of internal auditing was assessed 15 months after the audit, using linear mixed models, on the patient, professional, team and departmental levels. The measurement methods were patient record review on adverse events (AEs), surveys regarding patient experiences, safety culture and team climate, analysis of administrative hospital data (standardized mortality rate, SMR) and safety walk rounds (SWRs) to observe frontline care processes on safety. The AE rate decreased from 36.1% to 31.3% and the preventable AE rate from 5.5% to 3.6%; however, the differences before and after auditing were not statistically significant. The patient-reported experience measures regarding patient safety improved slightly over time (P < 0.001). The SMR, patient safety culture and team climate remained unchanged after the internal audit. The SWRs showed that medication safety and information security were improved (P < 0.05). Internal auditing was associated with improved patient experiences and observed safety on wards. No effects were found on adverse outcomes, safety culture and team climate 15 months after the internal audit.

Mental models of safety: do managers and employees see eye to eye?

PubMed

Prussia, Gregory E; Brown, Karen A; Willis, P Geoff

2003-01-01

Disagreements between managers and employees about the causes of accidents and unsafe work behaviors can lead to serious workplace conflicts and distract organizations from the important work of establishing positive safety climate and reducing the incidence of accidents. In this study, the authors examine a model for predicting safe work behaviors and establish the model's consistency across managers and employees in a steel plant setting. Using the model previously described by Brown, Willis, and Prussia (2000), the authors found that when variables influencing safety are considered within a framework of safe work behaviors, managers and employees share a similar mental model. The study then contrasts employees' and managers' specific attributional perceptions. Findings from these more fine-grained analyses suggest the two groups differ in several respects about individual constructs. Most notable were contrasts in attributions based on their perceptions of safety climate. When perceived climate is poor, managers believe employees are responsible and employees believe managers are responsible for workplace safety. However, as perceived safety climate improves, managers and employees converge in their perceptions of who is responsible for safety. It can be concluded from this study that in a highly interdependent work environment, such as a steel mill, where high system reliability is essential and members possess substantial experience working together, managers and employees will share general mental models about the factors that contribute to unsafe behaviors, and, ultimately, to workplace accidents. It is possible that organizations not as tightly coupled as steel mills can use such organizations as benchmarks, seeking ways to create a shared understanding of factors that contribute to a safe work environment. Part of this improvement effort should focus on advancing organizational safety climate. As climate improves, managers and employees are likely to agree more about the causes of safe/unsafe behaviors and workplace accidents, ultimately increasing their ability to work in unison to prevent accidents and to respond appropriately when they do occur. Finally, the survey items included in this study may be useful to organizations wishing to conduct self-assessments.

Nurse characteristics, leadership, safety climate, emotional labour and intention to stay for nurses: a structural equation modelling approach.

PubMed

Liang, Hui-Yu; Tang, Fu-In; Wang, Tze-Fang; Lin, Kai-Ching; Yu, Shu

2016-12-01

The aim of this study was to propose a theoretical model and apply it to examine the structural relationships among nurse characteristics, leadership characteristics, safety climate, emotional labour and intention to stay for hospital nurses. Global nursing shortages negatively affect the quality of care. The shortages can be reduced by retaining nurses. Few studies have independently examined the relationships among leadership, safety climate, emotional labour and nurses' intention to stay; more comprehensive theoretical foundations for examining nurses' intention to stay and its related factors are lacking. Cross-sectional. A purposive sample of 414 full-time nurses was recruited from two regional hospitals in Taiwan. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from November 2013-June 2014. Structural equation modelling was employed to test the theoretical models of the relationships among the constructs. Our data supported the theoretical model. Intention to stay was positively correlated with age and the safety climate, whereas working hours per week and emotional labour were negatively correlated. The nursing position and transformational leadership indirectly affected intention to stay; this effect was mediated separately by emotional labour and the safety climate. Our data supported the model fit. Our findings provide practical implications for healthcare organizations and administrators to increase nurses' intent to stay. Strategies including a safer climate, appropriate working hours and lower emotional labour can directly increase nurses' intent to stay. Transformational leadership did not directly influence nurses' intention to stay; however, it reduced emotional labour, thereby increasing intention to stay. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

School safe driving climate: Theoretical and practical considerations for promoting teen driver safety in school settings.

PubMed

Mirman, Jessica H; Roche, Brianne; Higgins-D'Alessandro, Ann

2018-06-21

The aims of this study were to extend the current literature on school climate that is focused on understanding how teacher, administrator, and student perceptions about driving-focused aspects of the social, educational, and institutional climate of schools can affect students' achievement, behavior, and adjustment towards the development of the concept of school safe driving climate (SSDC) and initiate the development of tools and processes for assessing SSDC. A mixed-methods approach was used to develop an initial version of a survey-based measure of SSDC that involved self-report surveys (students) and in-depth interviews (teachers). Exploratory factor analytic procedures identified SSDC constructs and a regression framework was used to examine associations among SSDC constructs and self-reported driver behaviors. Qualitative data were subjected to inductive analysis, with a goal of elucidating teachers' perspectives on SSDC and an SSDC intervention. The study sample consisted of 947 adolescents (48% male) from one large high school and 44 teacher advisors. Participants were recruited from a school participating in a state-wide effort to promote transportation safety through peer-led programming. Two SSDC factors were identified: Administrative Contributions to School Safety and Value of School Safety, which were associated with adolescents' perceptions of their driving behaviors. Adolescents' perceived that the intervention affected administrative safety. Teacher interviews contextualized these results and provided guidance on program revisions. Safe driving climate may be an important, modifiable, and measurable aspect of school climate. Additional research is needed to refine the assessment tool and to use it in longitudinal and experimental studies.

School climate: perceptual differences between students, parents, and school staff

PubMed Central

Ramsey, Christine M.; Spira, Adam P.; Parisi, Jeanine M.; Rebok, George W.

2016-01-01

Research suggests that school climate can have a great impact on student, teacher, and school outcomes. However, it is often assessed as a summary measure, without taking into account multiple perspectives (student, teacher, parent) or examining subdimensions within the broader construct. In this study, we assessed school climate from the perspective of students, staff, and parents within a large, urban school district using multilevel modeling techniques to examine within- and between-school variance. After adjusting for school-level demographic characteristics, students reported worse perceptions of safety and connectedness compared to both parent and staff ratings (all p < 0.05). Parents gave the lowest ratings of parental involvement, and staff gave the lowest ratings of academic emphasis (ps < 0.05). Findings demonstrate the importance of considering the type of informant when evaluating climate ratings within a school. Understanding how perceptions differ between informants can inform interventions to improve perceptions and prevent adverse outcomes. PMID:28642631

School climate: perceptual differences between students, parents, and school staff.

PubMed

Ramsey, Christine M; Spira, Adam P; Parisi, Jeanine M; Rebok, George W

2016-01-01

Research suggests that school climate can have a great impact on student, teacher, and school outcomes. However, it is often assessed as a summary measure, without taking into account multiple perspectives (student, teacher, parent) or examining subdimensions within the broader construct. In this study, we assessed school climate from the perspective of students, staff, and parents within a large, urban school district using multilevel modeling techniques to examine within- and between-school variance. After adjusting for school-level demographic characteristics, students reported worse perceptions of safety and connectedness compared to both parent and staff ratings (all p < 0.05). Parents gave the lowest ratings of parental involvement , and staff gave the lowest ratings of academic emphasis ( p s < 0.05). Findings demonstrate the importance of considering the type of informant when evaluating climate ratings within a school. Understanding how perceptions differ between informants can inform interventions to improve perceptions and prevent adverse outcomes.

Safety Climate Survey: reliability of results from a multicenter ICU survey.

PubMed

Kho, M E; Carbone, J M; Lucas, J; Cook, D J

2005-08-01

It is important to understand the clinical properties of instruments used to measure patient safety before they are used in the setting of an intensive care unit (ICU). The Safety Climate Survey (SCSu), an instrument endorsed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the Safety Culture Scale (SCSc), and the Safety Climate Mean (SCM), a subset of seven items from the SCSu, were administered in four Canadian university affiliated ICUs. All staff including nurses, allied healthcare professionals, non-clinical staff, intensivists, and managers were invited to participate in the cross sectional survey. The response rate was 74% (313/426). The internal consistency of the SCSu and SCSc was 0.86 and 0.80, respectively, while the SCM performed poorly at 0.51. Because of poor internal consistency, no further analysis of the SCM was therefore performed. Test-retest reliability of the SCSu and SCSc was 0.92. Out of a maximum score of 5, the mean (SD) scores of the SCSu and SCSc were 3.4 (0.6) and 3.4 (0.7), respectively. No differences were noted between the three medical-surgical and one cardiovascular ICU. Managers perceived a significantly more positive safety climate than other staff, as measured by the SCSu and SCSc. These results need to be interpreted cautiously because of the small number of management participants. Of the three instruments, the SCSu and SCSc appear to be measuring one construct and are sufficiently reliable. Future research should examine the properties of patient safety instruments in other ICUs, including responsiveness to change, to ensure that they are valid outcome measures for patient safety initiatives.

[Relationship between perceptions of safety climate at workplace and depressive disorders in manufacturing workers].

PubMed

Liu, Xu-hua; Xiao, Ya-ni; Huang, Zhi-xiong; Huang, Shao-bin; Cao, Xiao-ou; Guan, Dong-bo; Chen, Wei-qing

2013-04-01

To investigate the risk factors for depressive disorders in manufacturing workers and to provide a basis for developing health promotion measures at workplace. A questionnaire survey was performed in 8085 front-line production workers from 33 manufacturing enterprises in Nanhai District of Foshan, Guangdong Province, China. The questionnaire contained a survey of demographic characteristics, the Safety Climate Scale, the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, etc. The multilevel logistic regression analysis was applied to investigate the risk factors for depressive disorders in workers. A total of 6260 workers completed the survey; their mean age was 31.1 ± 8.6 years, and 53.2% of them were males. The multilevel logistic regression analysis showed that after adjustment for sociodemographic factors such as age, sex, and martial status, more depressive disorders were reported in the enterprises with higher score of "production safety training" than in those with lower score (OR = 1.46, 95%CI = 1.07 ∼ 1.97); fewer depressive disorders were reported in the enterprises with higher score of "colleagues concerned about production safety" than in those with lower score (OR = 0.08, 95%CI = 0.03 ∼ 0.26); the relationships of "safety warnings and precautions" and "managers concerned about production safety" with workers' depressive disorders were not statistically significant (OR = 0.78, 95%CI = 0.48 ∼ 1.28; OR = 1.08, 95%CI = 0.68 ∼ 1.72). Depressive disorders in manufacturing workers are related to the safety climate at workplace, which indicates that a good safety climate at workplace should be created to prevent and control depressive disorders in workers.

Workforce Perceptions of Hospital Safety Culture: Development and Validation of the Patient Safety Climate in Healthcare Organizations Survey

PubMed Central

Singer, Sara; Meterko, Mark; Baker, Laurence; Gaba, David; Falwell, Alyson; Rosen, Amy

2007-01-01

Objective To describe the development of an instrument for assessing workforce perceptions of hospital safety culture and to assess its reliability and validity. Data Sources/Study Setting Primary data collected between March 2004 and May 2005. Personnel from 105 U.S. hospitals completed a 38-item paper and pencil survey. We received 21,496 completed questionnaires, representing a 51 percent response rate. Study Design Based on review of existing safety climate surveys, we developed a list of key topics pertinent to maintaining a culture of safety in high-reliability organizations. We developed a draft questionnaire to address these topics and pilot tested it in four preliminary studies of hospital personnel. We modified the questionnaire based on experience and respondent feedback, and distributed the revised version to 42,249 hospital workers. Data Collection We randomly divided respondents into derivation and validation samples. We applied exploratory factor analysis to responses in the derivation sample. We used those results to create scales in the validation sample, which we subjected to multitrait analysis (MTA). Principal Findings We identified nine constructs, three organizational factors, two unit factors, three individual factors, and one additional factor. Constructs demonstrated substantial convergent and discriminant validity in the MTA. Cronbach's α coefficients ranged from 0.50 to 0.89. Conclusions It is possible to measure key salient features of hospital safety climate using a valid and reliable 38-item survey and appropriate hospital sample sizes. This instrument may be used in further studies to better understand the impact of safety climate on patient safety outcomes. PMID:17850530

School climate factors contributing to student and faculty perceptions of safety in select Arizona schools.

PubMed

Bosworth, Kris; Ford, Lysbeth; Hernandaz, Diley

2011-04-01

To ensure that schools are safe places where students can learn, researchers and educators must understand student and faculty safety concerns. This study examines student and teacher perceptions of school safety. Twenty-two focus groups with students and faculty were conducted in 11 secondary schools. Schools were selected from a stratified sample to vary in location, proximity to Indian reservations, size, and type. The data analysis was based on grounded theory. In 9 of 11 schools, neither faculty nor students voiced overwhelming concerns about safety. When asked what makes school safe, students tended to report physical security features. School climate and staff actions also increased feelings of safety. Faculty reported that relationships and climate are key factors in making schools safe. High student performance on standardized tests does not buffer students from unsafe behavior, nor does living in a dangerous neighborhood necessarily lead to more drug use or violence within school walls. School climate seemed to explain the difference between schools in which students and faculty reported higher versus lower levels of violence and alcohol and other drug use. The findings raise provocative questions about school safety and provide insight into elements that lead to perceptions of safety. Some schools have transcended issues of location and neighborhood to provide an environment perceived as safe. Further study of those schools could provide insights for policy makers, program planners, and educational leaders. © 2011, American School Health Association.

A study to assess the influence of interprofessional point of care simulation training on safety culture in the operating theatre environment of a university teaching hospital.

PubMed

Hinde, Theresa; Gale, Thomas; Anderson, Ian; Roberts, Martin; Sice, Paul

2016-01-01

Interprofessional point of care or in situ simulation is used as a training tool in our operating theatre directorate with the aim of improving crisis behaviours. This study aimed to assess the impact of interprofessional point of care simulation on the safety culture of operating theatres. A validated Safety Attitude Questionnaire was administered to staff members before each simulation scenario and then re-administered to the same staff members after 6-12 months. Pre- and post-training Safety Attitude Questionnaire-Operating Room (SAQ-OR) scores were compared using paired sample t-tests. Analysis revealed a statistically significant perceived improvement in both safety (p < 0.001) and teamwork (p = 0.013) climate scores (components of safety culture) 6-12 months after interprofessional simulation training. A growing body of literature suggests that a positive safety culture is associated with improved patient outcomes. Our study supports the implementation of point of care simulation as a useful intervention to improve safety culture in theatres.

Climate Prediction - NOAA's National Weather Service

Science.gov Websites

Statistical Models... MOS Prod GFS-LAMP Prod Climate Past Weather Predictions Weather Safety Weather Radio National Weather Service on FaceBook NWS on Facebook NWS Director Home > Climate > Predictions Climate Prediction Long range forecasts across the U.S. Climate Prediction Web Sites Climate Prediction

NCEP Central Operations

Science.gov Websites

Climate Climate Prediction Climate Archives Weather Safety Storm Ready NOAA Central Library Photo Library NCO's MISSION * Execute the NCEP operational model suite - Create climate, weather, ocean, space and ) NCO Organizational Chart NOAA's Weather and Climate Operational Supercomputing System is known as

Life cycle assessment of stormwater management in the context of climate change adaptation.

PubMed

Brudler, Sarah; Arnbjerg-Nielsen, Karsten; Hauschild, Michael Zwicky; Rygaard, Martin

2016-12-01

Expected increases in pluvial flooding, due to climatic changes, require large investments in the retrofitting of cities to keep damage at an acceptable level. Many cities have investigated the possibility of implementing stormwater management (SWM) systems which are multi-functional and consist of different elements interacting to achieve desired safety levels. Typically, an economic assessment is carried out in the planning phase, while environmental sustainability is given little or no attention. In this paper, life cycle assessment is used to quantify environmental impacts of climate change adaptation strategies. The approach is tested using a climate change adaptation strategy for a catchment in Copenhagen, Denmark. A stormwater management system, using green infrastructure and local retention measures in combination with planned routing of stormwater on the surfaces to manage runoff, is compared to a traditional, sub-surface approach. Flood safety levels based on the Three Points Approach are defined as the functional unit to ensure comparability between systems. The adaptation plan has significantly lower impacts (3-18 person equivalents/year) than the traditional alternative (14-103 person equivalents/year) in all analysed impact categories. The main impacts are caused by managing rain events with return periods between 0.2 and 10 years. The impacts of handling smaller events with a return period of up to 0.2 years and extreme events with a return period of up to 100 years are lower in both alternatives. The uncertainty analysis shows the advantages of conducting an environmental assessment in the early stages of the planning process, when the design can still be optimised, but it also highlights the importance of detailed and site-specific data. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Psychometric support of the school climate measure in a large, diverse sample of adolescents: a replication and extension.

PubMed

Zullig, Keith J; Collins, Rani; Ghani, Nadia; Patton, Jon M; Scott Huebner, E; Ajamie, Jean

2014-02-01

The School Climate Measure (SCM) was developed and validated in 2010 in response to a dearth of psychometrically sound school climate instruments. This study sought to further validate the SCM on a large, diverse sample of Arizona public school adolescents (N = 20,953). Four SCM domains (positive student-teacher relationships, academic support, order and discipline, and physical environment) were available for the analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were established to construct validity, and criterion-related validity was assessed via selected Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) school safety items and self-reported grade (GPA) point average. Analyses confirmed the 4 SCM school climate domains explained approximately 63% of the variance (factor loading range .45-.92). Structural equation models fit the data well χ(2) = 14,325 (df = 293, p < .001), comparative fit index (CFI) = .951, Tuker-Lewis index (TLI) = .952, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = .05). The goodness-of-fit index was .940. Coefficient alphas ranged from .82 to .93. Analyses of variance with post hoc comparisons suggested the SCM domains related in hypothesized directions with the school safety items and GPA. Additional evidence supports the validity and reliability of the SCM. Measures, such as the SCM, can facilitate data-driven decisions and may be incorporated into evidenced-based processes designed to improve student outcomes. © 2014, American School Health Association.

Relative benefit of a stage of change approach for the prevention of musculoskeletal pain and discomfort: a cluster randomised trial.

PubMed

Doda, Diana; Rothmore, Paul; Pisaniello, Dino; Briggs, Nancy; Stewart, Sasha; Mahmood, Mohammed; Hiller, Janet E

2015-11-01

To examine the benefit of a psychological Stage of Change (SOC) approach, relative to standard ergonomics advice, for the prevention of work-related musculoskeletal pain and discomfort (MSPD). A cluster randomised trial was conducted in South Australia across a broad range of workplaces. Repeated face-to-face interviews were conducted onsite to assess MSPD, safety climate, job satisfaction and other factors. Changes in MSPD across intervention groups and time were investigated using Generalised Estimating Equation (GEE) methods. 25 workgroups (involving 242 workers) were randomly allocated to either a standard intervention or an intervention tailored according to SOC. The prevalence of MSPD increased for both groups, but was only significant for the standard group, in respect of lower back MSPD. Workers receiving tailored interventions were 60% less likely to experience lower back MSPD. After adjusting for age, gender and job satisfaction, it was found that company safety climate and length of employment were significantly correlated to the time-intervention effect. There was no correlation with workload. Compared with standard ergonomics advice to management, there was evidence of a benefit of stage-matched intervention for MSPD prevention, particularly for low back pain. Organisational safety climate should be taken into account when planning prevention programmes. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Patient safety culture in Norwegian nursing homes.

PubMed

Bondevik, Gunnar Tschudi; Hofoss, Dag; Husebø, Bettina Sandgathe; Deilkås, Ellen Catharina Tveter

2017-06-20

Patient safety culture concerns leader and staff interaction, attitudes, routines, awareness and practices that impinge on the risk of patient-adverse events. Due to their complex multiple diseases, nursing home patients are at particularly high risk of adverse events. Studies have found an association between patient safety culture and the risk of adverse events. This study aimed to investigate safety attitudes among healthcare providers in Norwegian nursing homes, using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire - Ambulatory Version (SAQ-AV). We studied whether variations in safety attitudes were related to professional background, age, work experience and mother tongue. In February 2016, 463 healthcare providers working in five nursing homes in Tønsberg, Norway, were invited to answer the SAQ-AV, translated and adapted to the Norwegian nursing home setting. Previous validation of the Norwegian SAQ-AV for nursing homes identified five patient safety factors: teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, working conditions and stress recognition. SPSS v.22 was used for statistical analysis, which included estimations of mean values, standard deviations and multiple linear regressions. P-values <0.05 were considered to be significant. Out of the 463 employees invited, 288 (62.2%) answered the questionnaire. Response rates varied between 56.9% and 72.2% across the five nursing homes. In multiple linear regression analysis, we found that increasing age and job position among the healthcare providers were associated with significantly increased mean scores for the patient safety factors teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction and working conditions. Not being a Norwegian native speaker was associated with a significantly higher mean score for job satisfaction and a significantly lower mean score for stress recognition. Neither professional background nor work experience were significantly associated with mean scores for any patient safety factor. Patient safety factor scores in nursing homes were poorer than previously found in Norwegian general practices, but similar to findings in out-of-hours primary care clinics. Patient safety culture assessment may help nursing home leaders to initiate targeted quality improvement interventions. Further research should investigate associations between patient safety culture and the occurrence of adverse events in nursing homes.

The effects of crew resource management on teamwork and safety climate at Veterans Health Administration facilities.

PubMed

Schwartz, Miriam E; Welsh, Deborah E; Paull, Douglas E; Knowles, Regina S; DeLeeuw, Lori D; Hemphill, Robin R; Essen, Keith E; Sculli, Gary L

2017-11-09

Communication failure is a significant source of adverse events in health care and a leading root cause of sentinel events reported to the Joint Commission. The Veterans Health Administration National Center for Patient Safety established Clinical Team Training (CTT) as a comprehensive program to enhance patient safety and to improve communication and teamwork among health care professionals. CTT is based on techniques used in aviation's Crew Resource Management (CRM) training. The aviation industry has reached a significant safety record in large part related to the culture change generated by CRM and sustained by its recurrent implementation. This article focuses on the improvement of communication, teamwork, and patient safety by utilizing a standardized, CRM-based, interprofessional, immersive training in diverse clinical areas. The Teamwork and Safety Climate Questionnaire was used to evaluate safety climate before and after CTT. The scores for all of the 27 questions on the questionnaire showed an increase from baseline to 12 months, and 11 of those increases were statistically significant. A recurrent training is recommended to maintain the positive outcomes. CTT enhances patient safety and reduces risk of patient harm by improving teamwork and facilitating clear, concise, specific and timely communication among health care professionals. © 2017 American Society for Healthcare Risk Management of the American Hospital Association.

Worksite safety climate, smoking, and the use of protective equipment by blue collar building workers enrolled in the MassBUILT smoking cessation trial

PubMed Central

Dutra, Lauren M; Kim, Seung-Sup; Williams, David R; Kawachi, Ichiro; Okechukwu, Cassandra A

2014-01-01

Objective In order to assess potential contributors to high injury rates and smoking prevalence among construction workers, we investigated the association of safety climate with personal protective equipment (PPE) use, and smoking behaviors. Methods Logistic regression models estimated risk ratios for PPE use and smoking using data from participants in MassBUILT smoking cessation intervention (n=1,725). Results Contractor safety climate was negatively associated with use of dust masks (RR=0.88,95%CI:0.83–0.94); respirators (RR=0.82,95%CI:0.75–0.89); general equipment (RR=0.98,95%CI:0.95–1.00); and fall protection (RR=0.94,95%CI:0.91–0.98) and positively associated with current smoking (RR=1.12,95%CI:1.01–1.25) but not smoking cessation. Coworker safety climate was negatively associated with use of dust masks (RR=0.87,95%CI:0.82–0.92); respirators (RR=0.80,95%CI:0.74–0.87); general equipment (RR=0.96,95%CI:0.94–0.98); fall (RR=0.92,95%CI:0.89–0.96) and hearing (RR=0.88,95%CI:0.83–0.93) protection but not smoking. Conclusions Worksite safety climate may be important for PPE use and smoking, but further research is needed. PMID:25285831

[Medication error management climate and perception for system use according to construction of medication error prevention system].

PubMed

Kim, Myoung Soo

2012-08-01

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine current status of IT-based medication error prevention system construction and the relationships among system construction, medication error management climate and perception for system use. The participants were 124 patient safety chief managers working for 124 hospitals with over 300 beds in Korea. The characteristics of the participants, construction status and perception of systems (electric pharmacopoeia, electric drug dosage calculation system, computer-based patient safety reporting and bar-code system) and medication error management climate were measured in this study. The data were collected between June and August 2011. Descriptive statistics, partial Pearson correlation and MANCOVA were used for data analysis. Electric pharmacopoeia were constructed in 67.7% of participating hospitals, computer-based patient safety reporting systems were constructed in 50.8%, electric drug dosage calculation systems were in use in 32.3%. Bar-code systems showed up the lowest construction rate at 16.1% of Korean hospitals. Higher rates of construction of IT-based medication error prevention systems resulted in greater safety and a more positive error management climate prevailed. The supportive strategies for improving perception for use of IT-based systems would add to system construction, and positive error management climate would be more easily promoted.

The associations between work-life balance behaviours, teamwork climate and safety climate: cross-sectional survey introducing the work-life climate scale, psychometric properties, benchmarking data and future directions.

PubMed

Sexton, J Bryan; Schwartz, Stephanie P; Chadwick, Whitney A; Rehder, Kyle J; Bae, Jonathan; Bokovoy, Joanna; Doram, Keith; Sotile, Wayne; Adair, Kathryn C; Profit, Jochen

2017-08-01

Improving the resiliency of healthcare workers is a national imperative, driven in part by healthcare workers having minimal exposure to the skills and culture to achieve work-life balance (WLB). Regardless of current policies, healthcare workers feel compelled to work more and take less time to recover from work. Satisfaction with WLB has been measured, as has work-life conflict, but how frequently healthcare workers engage in specific WLB behaviours is rarely assessed. Measurement of behaviours may have advantages over measurement of perceptions; behaviours more accurately reflect WLB and can be targeted by leaders for improvement. 1. To describe a novel survey scale for evaluating work-life climate based on specific behavioural frequencies in healthcare workers.2. To evaluate the scale's psychometric properties and provide benchmarking data from a large healthcare system.3. To investigate associations between work-life climate, teamwork climate and safety climate. Cross-sectional survey study of US healthcare workers within a large healthcare system. 7923 of 9199 eligible healthcare workers across 325 work settings within 16 hospitals completed the survey in 2009 (86% response rate). The overall work-life climate scale internal consistency was Cronbach α=0.790. t-Tests of top versus bottom quartile work settings revealed that positive work-life climate was associated with better teamwork climate, safety climate and increased participation in safety leadership WalkRounds with feedback (p<0.001). Univariate analysis of variance demonstrated differences that varied significantly in WLB between healthcare worker role, hospitals and work setting. The work-life climate scale exhibits strong psychometric properties, elicits results that vary widely by work setting, discriminates between positive and negative workplace norms, and aligns well with other culture constructs that have been found to correlate with clinical outcomes. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Public and Private Hospital Nurses’ Perceptions of the Ethical Climate in Their Work Settings, Sari City, 2011

PubMed Central

Ghorbani, Ali Asghar; Hesamzadeh, Ali; Khademloo, Mohammad; Khalili, Salimeh; Hesamzadeh, Shamim; Berger, Valerie

2014-01-01

Background: Nurses’ perceptions of ethical climate patterns have certain undeniable effects on hospitals. There is little evidence of possible differences in this element between public and private hospitals and contributing factors. Objectives: This study investigated whether the perceptions of the ethical climate in nurses’ working in public hospitals differ from that of nurses in private hospitals, and which factors may affect nurses’ perceptions. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study of randomly selected registered nurses (n = 235), working in four public hospitals affiliated to Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, and three private hospitals, was conducted in Sari City, Iran. A self-administered questionnaire, containing demographic characteristics and the Hospital Ethical Climate Survey (HECS), were used to assess registered nurses’ perceptions of public and private hospitals ethical climate. An independent t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to analyze the data. Results: Across the five factors of HECS, the highest and lowest mean scores pertained to managers and physicians, respectively, in both public and private hospitals. Nurses who had a conditional employment situation and those working in pediatric intensive care units showed significantly more positive perceptions of the ethical work climate when compared to their peers (P < 0.05). Although the mean score of ethical work climate in private hospitals (3.82 ± 0.61) was higher than that in public hospitals (3.76 ± 0.54), no significant difference was found (P = 0.44). Conclusions: Hospital managers need to discover better ways to promote safety and health programs for their staff according to nurses’ area of work and their type of units. They should also encourage greater levels of participation in safety-enhancing initiatives in the hospital’s ethical climate, especially in the areas of nurses’ perceptions of their physician colleagues, and for nurses with a conditional employment situation. PMID:25414890

Climate change and safety at work with ionizing radiations.

PubMed

Contessa, Gian Marco; Grandi, Carlo; Scognamiglio, Mario; Genovese, Elisabetta; Sandri, Sandro

2016-01-01

The accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company's (TEPCO's) Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) has been one of the dominant topic in nuclear safety and it has brought new attention on the matter of accidents in NPPs due to external events related to natural causes. Climate change has risen new risks and the growing probability of extreme external events has increased exposure and vulnerability of workers in the nuclear sector. However extreme natural events are a threat not only to NPPs but to all facilities dealing with radioactive material and in an emergency scenario they can affect the effectiveness and implementation of safety devices and procedures and also prevent communications, causing delays in the readiness of response. It is clear that adaptation strategies are necessary to cope with emerging changes in climate and a new nuclear safety culture is growing, that addresses accidents initiated not only by internal but also by external events.

Modeling the factors affecting unsafe behavior in the construction industry from safety supervisors' perspective.

PubMed

Khosravi, Yahya; Asilian-Mahabadi, Hassan; Hajizadeh, Ebrahim; Hassanzadeh-Rangi, Narmin; Bastani, Hamid; Khavanin, Ali; Mortazavi, Seyed Bagher

2014-01-01

There can be little doubt that the construction is the most hazardous industry in the worldwide. This study was designed to modeling the factors affecting unsafe behavior from the perspective of safety supervisors. The qualitative research was conducted to extract a conceptual model. A structural model was then developed based on a questionnaire survey (n=266) by two stage Structural Equation Model (SEM) approach. An excellent confirmed 12-factors structure explained about 62% of variances unsafe behavior in the construction industry. A good fit structural model indicated that safety climate factors were positively correlated with safety individual factors (P<0.001) and workplace safety condition (P<0.001). The workplace safety condition was found to play a strong mediating role in linking the safety climate and construction workers' engagement in safe or unsafe behavior. In order to improve construction safety performance, more focus on the workplace condition is required.

Psychosocial safety climate, emotional exhaustion, and work injuries in healthcare workplaces.

PubMed

Zadow, Amy Jane; Dollard, Maureen Frances; Mclinton, Sarven Savia; Lawrence, Peter; Tuckey, Michelle Rae

2017-12-01

Preventing work injuries requires a clear understanding of how they occur, how they are recorded, and the accuracy of injury surveillance. Our innovation was to examine how psychosocial safety climate (PSC) influences the development of reported and unreported physical and psychological workplace injuries beyond (physical) safety climate, via the erosion of psychological health (emotional exhaustion). Self-report data (T2, 2013) from 214 hospital employees (18 teams) were linked at the team level to the hospital workplace injury register (T1, 2012; T2, 2013; and T3, 2014). Concordance between survey-reported and registered injury rates was low (36%), indicating that many injuries go unreported. Safety climate was the strongest predictor of T2 registered injury rates (controlling for T1); PSC and emotional exhaustion also played a role. Emotional exhaustion was the strongest predictor of survey-reported total injuries and underreporting. Multilevel analysis showed that low PSC, emanating from senior managers and transmitted through teams, was the origin of psychological health erosion (i.e., low emotional exhaustion), which culminated in greater self-reported work injuries and injury underreporting (both physical and psychological). These results underscore the need to consider, in theory and practice, a dual physical-psychosocial safety explanation of injury events and a psychosocial explanation of injury underreporting. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Staying silent about safety issues: Conceptualizing and measuring safety silence motives.

PubMed

Manapragada, Archana; Bruk-Lee, Valentina

2016-06-01

Communication between employees and supervisors about safety-related issues is an important component of a safe workplace. When supervisors receive information from employees about safety issues, they may gain otherwise-missed opportunities to correct these issues and/or prevent negative safety outcomes. A series of three studies were conducted to identify various safety silence motives, which describe the reasons that employees do not speak up to supervisors about safety-related issues witnessed in the workplace, and to develop a tool to assess these motives. Results suggest that employees stay silent about safety issues based on perceptions of altering relationships with others (relationship-based), perceptions of the organizational climate (climate-based), the assessment of the safety issue (issue-based), or characteristics of the job (job-based). We developed a 17-item measure to assess these four motives, and initial evidence was found for the construct and incremental validity of the safety silence motives measure in a sample of nurses. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Family-Centered Rounds Checklist, Family Engagement, and Patient Safety: A Randomized Trial

PubMed Central

Jacobsohn, Gwen C.; Rajamanickam, Victoria P.; Carayon, Pascale; Kelly, Michelle M.; Wetterneck, Tosha B.; Rathouz, Paul J.; Brown, Roger L.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Family-centered rounds (FCRs) have become standard of care, despite the limited evaluation of FCRs’ benefits or interventions to support high-quality FCR delivery. This work examines the impact of the FCR checklist intervention, a checklist and associated provider training, on performance of FCR elements, family engagement, and patient safety. METHODS: This cluster randomized trial involved 298 families. Two hospital services were randomized to use the checklist; 2 others delivered usual care. We evaluated the performance of 8 FCR checklist elements and family engagement from 673 pre- and postintervention FCR videos and assessed the safety climate with the Children’s Hospital Safety Climate Questionnaire. Random effects regression models were used to assess intervention impact. RESULTS: The intervention significantly increased the number of FCR checklist elements performed (β = 1.2, P < .001). Intervention rounds were significantly more likely to include asking the family (odds ratio [OR] = 2.43, P < .05) or health care team (OR = 4.28, P = .002) for questions and reading back orders (OR = 12.43, P < .001). Intervention families’ engagement and reports of safety climate were no different from usual care. However, performance of specific checklist elements was associated with changes in these outcomes. For example, order read-back was associated with significantly more family engagement. Asking families for questions was associated with significantly better ratings of staff’s communication openness and safety of handoffs and transitions. CONCLUSIONS: The performance of FCR checklist elements was enhanced by checklist implementation and associated with changes in family engagement and more positive perceptions of safety climate. Implementing the checklist improves delivery of FCRs, impacting quality and safety of care. PMID:28557720

Safety climate in the federal fire management community: Influences of organizational, environmental, group, and individual characteristics (Abstract)

Treesearch

Brooke Baldauf McBride; Anne E. Black

2012-01-01

This study examined the effects of organizational, environmental, group and individual characteristics on five components of safety climate in the US federal fire management community (HRO Practices, Leadership, Group Culture, Learning Orientation and Mission Clarity). Multiple analyses of variance revealed that all types of characteristics had a significant effect on...

Safety climate in the US federal wildland fire management community: influences of organizational, environmental, group, and individual characteristics

Treesearch

Anne E. Black; Brooke Baldauf McBride

2013-01-01

This study examined the effects of organisational, environmental, group and individual characteristics on five components of safety climate (High Reliability Organising Practices, Leadership, Group Culture, Learning Orientation and Mission Clarity) in the US federal wildland fire management community. Of particular interest were differences between perceptions based on...

Improving Hospital Quality and Patient Safety an Examination of Organizational Culture and Information Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gardner, John Wallace

2012-01-01

This dissertation examines the effects of safety culture, including operational climate and practices, as well as the adoption and use of information systems for delivering high quality healthcare and improved patient experience. Chapter 2 studies the influence of both general and outcome-specific hospital climate and quality practices on process…

Measuring safety climate in health care.

PubMed

Flin, R; Burns, C; Mearns, K; Yule, S; Robertson, E M

2006-04-01

To review quantitative studies of safety climate in health care to examine the psychometric properties of the questionnaires designed to measure this construct. A systematic literature review was undertaken to study sample and questionnaire design characteristics (source, no of items, scale type), construct validity (content validity, factor structure and internal reliability, concurrent validity), within group agreement, and level of analysis. Twelve studies were examined. There was a lack of explicit theoretical underpinning for most questionnaires and some instruments did not report standard psychometric criteria. Where this information was available, several questionnaires appeared to have limitations. More consideration should be given to psychometric factors in the design of healthcare safety climate instruments, especially as these are beginning to be used in large scale surveys across healthcare organisations.

Safety Climate of Commercial Vehicle Operation

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-03-01

Enhancing the safety culture within trucking and motor coach industries has become a key area of concern given the potential impact it has on crashes and overall safety. Many organizations recognize that safety is compromised if the culture within th...

School Climate Research Summary: August 2012. School Climate Brief, Number 3

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thapa, Amrit; Cohen, Jonathan; Higgins-D'Alessandro, Ann; Guffey, Shawn

2012-01-01

Over the past three decades, researchers and educators have increasingly recognized the importance of K-12 school climate. This summary report builds on previous school climate reviews and details how school climate is associated with and/or promotes safety, healthy relationships, engaged learning and teaching and school improvement efforts. In…

The traffic climate in China: The mediating effect of traffic safety climate between personality and dangerous driving behavior.

PubMed

Zhang, Qian; Ge, Yan; Qu, Weina; Zhang, Kan; Sun, Xianghong

2018-04-01

Traffic safety climate is defined as road users' attitudes and perceptions of traffic in a specific context at a given point in time. The current study aimed to validate the Chinese version of the Traffic Climate Scale (TCS) and to explore its relation to drivers' personality and dangerous driving behavior. A sample of 413 drivers completed the Big Five Inventory (BFI), the Chinese version of the TCS, the Dula Dangerous Driving Index (DDDI) and a demographic questionnaire. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were performed to confirm a three-factor (external affective demands, internal requirements and functionality) solution of the TCS. The reliability and validity of the Chinese version of TCS were verified. More importantly, the results showed that the effect of personality on dangerous driving behavior was mediated by traffic climate. Specifically, the functionality of the TCS mediated the effect of neuroticism on negative cognitive/emotional driving and drunk driving, while openness had an indirect impact on aggressive driving, risky driving and drunk driving based on the internal requirements of the TCS. Additionally, agreeableness had a negative direct impact on four factors of the DDDI, while neuroticism had a positive direct impact on negative cognitive/emotional driving, drunk driving and risky driving. In conclusion, the Chinese version of the TCS will be useful to evaluate drivers' attitudes towards and perceptions of the requirements of traffic environment in which they participate and will also be valuable for comparing traffic cultures and environments in different countries. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

NOMADS-NOAA Operational Model Archive and Distribution System

Science.gov Websites

Forecast Maps Climate Climate Prediction Climate Archives Weather Safety Storm Ready NOAA Central Library (16km) 6 hours grib filter http OpenDAP-alt URMA hourly - http - Climate Models Climate Forecast System Flux Products 6 hours grib filter http - Climate Forecast System 3D Pressure Products 6 hours grib

100 years of occupational safety research: From basic protections and work analysis to a multilevel view of workplace safety and risk.

PubMed

Hofmann, David A; Burke, Michael J; Zohar, Dov

2017-03-01

Starting with initiatives dating back to the mid-1800s, we provide a high-level review of the key trends and developments in the application of applied psychology to the field of occupational safety. Factory laws, basic worker compensation, and research on accident proneness comprised much of the early work. Thus, early research and practice very much focused on the individual worker, the design of their work, and their basic protection. Gradually and over time, the focus began to navigate further into the organizational context. One of the early efforts to broaden beyond the individual worker was a significant focus on safety-related training during the middle of the 20th century. Toward the latter years of the 20th century and continuing the move from the individual worker to the broader organizational context, there was a significant increase in leadership and organizational climate (safety climate) research. Ultimately, this resulted in the development of a multilevel model of safety culture/climate. After discussing these trends, we identify key conclusions and opportunities for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Perceived School and Neighborhood Safety, Neighborhood Violence and Academic Achievement in Urban School Children

PubMed Central

AJ, Milam; CDM, Furr-Holden; PJ, Leaf

2010-01-01

Community and school violence continue to be a major public health problem, especially among urban children and adolescents. Little research has focused on the effect of school safety and neighborhood violence on academic performance. This study examines the effect of the school and neighborhood climate on academic achievement among a population of 3rd-5th grade students in an urban public school system. Community and school safety were assessed using the School Climate Survey, an annual city-wide assessment of student’s perception of school and community safety. Community violence was measured using the Neighborhood Inventory for Environmental Typology, an objective observational assessment of neighborhood characteristics. Academic achievement was measured using the Maryland State Assessment (MSA), a standardized exam given to all Maryland 3rd-8th graders. School Climate Data and MSA data were aggregated by school and grade. Objective assessments of neighborhood environment and students’ self-reported school and neighborhood safety were both strongly associated with academic performance. Increasing neighborhood violence was associated with statistically significant decreases from 4.2%-8.7% in math and reading achievement; increasing perceived safety was associated with significant increases in achievement from 16%-22%. These preliminary findings highlight the adverse impact of perceived safety and community violence exposure on primary school children’s academic performance. PMID:21197388

Safety Challenges and Improvement Strategies of Ethnic Minority Construction Workers: A Case Study in Hong Kong.

PubMed

Wu, Chunlin; Luo, Xiaowei; Wang, Tao; Wang, Yue; Sapkota, Bibek

2018-04-18

Due to cultural differences, ethnic minority construction workers are more difficult to manage and more vulnerable to accidents. This study aims to identify the major barriers faced by ethnic minority workers from their own perspectives and determine potential strategies to enhance safety climate of construction projects, thus ultimately improve their safety performance. A survey with modified Nordic safety climate questionnaire was conducted in a certain sub-contractor in Hong Kong. In-depth interviews, status quo description, major challenge investigation and safety knowledge tests were carried as well. The top three most important safety challenges identified are improper stereotypes from the whole industry, lack of opportunities for job assignment, and language barriers. To improve the safety performance, employers should allocate sufficient personal protective equipment and governments should organize unannounced site visits more frequently. Besides, the higher-level management should avoid giving contradictory instructions to foremen against to the standards of supervisors.

Reaping the Benefits of Task Conflict in Teams: The Critical Role of Team Psychological Safety Climate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradley, Bret H.; Postlethwaite, Bennett E.; Klotz, Anthony C.; Hamdani, Maria R.; Brown, Kenneth G.

2012-01-01

Past research suggests that task conflict may improve team performance under certain conditions; however, we know little about these specific conditions. On the basis of prior theory and research on conflict in teams, we argue that a climate of psychological safety is one specific context under which task conflict will improve team performance.…

Predictors of nurses' acceptance of an intravenous catheter safety device.

PubMed

Rivers, Dianna Lipp; Aday, Lu Ann; Frankowski, Ralph F; Felknor, Sarah; White, Donna; Nichols, Brenda

2003-01-01

It is important to determine the factors that predict whether nurses accept and use a new intravenous (IV) safety device because there are approximately 800,000 needlesticks per year with the risk of contracting a life-threatening bloodborne disease such as HIV or hepatitis C. To determine the predictors of nurses' acceptance of the Protectiv Plus IV catheter safety needle device at a teaching hospital in Texas. A one-time cross-sectional survey of nurses (N = 742) was conducted using a 34-item questionnaire. A framework was developed identifying organizational and individual predictors of acceptance. The three principal dimensions of acceptance were (a) satisfaction with the device, (b) extent to which the device is always used, and (c) nurse recommendations over other safety devices. Measurements included developing summary subscales for the variables of safety climate and acceptance. Descriptive statistics and multiple linear and logistic regression models were computed. The findings showed widespread acceptance of the device. Nurses who had adequate training and a positive institutional safety climate were more accepting (p

Playing fair: the contribution of high-functioning recess to overall school climate in low-income elementary schools.

PubMed

London, Rebecca A; Westrich, Lisa; Stokes-Guinan, Katie; McLaughlin, Milbrey

2015-01-01

Recess is a part of the elementary school day with strong implications for school climate. Positive school climate has been linked to a host of favorable student outcomes, from attendance to achievement. We examine 6 low-income elementary schools' experiences implementing a recess-based program designed to provide safe, healthy, and inclusive play to study how improving recess functioning can affect school climate. Data from teacher, principal, and recess coach interviews; student focus groups; recess observations; and a teacher survey are triangulated to understand the ways that recess changed during implementation. Comparing schools that achieved higher- and lower-functioning recesses, we link recess functioning with school climate. Recess improved in all schools, but 4 of the 6 achieved a higher-functioning recess. In these schools, teachers and principals agreed that by the end of the year, recess offered opportunities for student engagement, conflict resolution, pro-social skill development, and emotional and physical safety. Respondents in these four schools linked these changes to improved overall school climate. Recess is an important part of the school day for contributing to school climate. Creating a positive recess climate helps students to be engaged in meaningful play and return to class ready to learn. © 2014, American School Health Association.

[Analysis of the patient safety culture in hospitals of the Spanish National Health System].

PubMed

Saturno, P J; Da Silva Gama, Z A; de Oliveira-Sousa, S L; Fonseca, Y A; de Souza-Oliveira, A C; Castillo, Carmen; López, M José; Ramón, Teresa; Carrillo, Andrés; Iranzo, M Dolores; Soria, Victor; Saturno, Pedro J; Parra, Pedro; Gomis, Rafael; Gascón, Juan José; Martinez, José; Arellano, Carmen; Gama, Zenewton A Da Silva; de Oliveira-Sousa, Silvana L; de Souza-Oliveira, Adriana C; Fonseca, Yadira A; Ferreira, Marta Sobral

2008-12-01

A safety culture is essential to minimize errors and adverse events. Its measurement is needed to design activities in order to improve it. This paper describes the methods and main results of a study on safety climate in a nation-wide representative sample of public hospitals of the Spanish NHS. The Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture questionnaire was distributed to a random sample of health professionals in a representative sample of 24 hospitals, proportionally stratified by hospital size. Results are analyzed to provide a description of safety climate, its strengths and weaknesses. Differences by hospital size, type of health professional and service are analyzed using ANOVA. A total of 2503 responses are analyzed (response rate: 40%, (93% from professionals with direct patient contact). A total of 50% gave patient safety a score from 6 to 8 (on a 10-point scale); 95% reported < 2 events last year. Dimensions "Teamwork within hospital units" (71.8 [1.8]) and "Supervisor/Manager expectations and actions promoting safety" (61.8 [1.7]) have the highest percentage of positive answers. "Staffing", "Teamwork across hospital units", "Overall perceptions of safety" and "Hospital management support for patient safety" could be identified as weaknesses. Significant differences by hospital size, type of professional and service suggest a generally more positive attitude in small hospitals and Pharmacy services, and a more negative one in physicians. Strengths and weaknesses of the safety climate in the hospitals of the Spanish NHS have been identified and they are used to design appropriate strategies for improvement.

Impacts of climate change and variability on transportation systems and infrastructure : Gulf Coast study, phase I

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-03-01

Climate affects the design, construction, safety, operations, and maintenance of transportation : infrastructure and systems. The prospect of a changing climate raises critical questions : regarding how alterations in temperature, precipitation, stor...

Application of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) in Albanian hospitals: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Gabrani, Adriatik; Hoxha, Adrian; Simaku, Artan; Gabrani, Jonila Cyco

2015-04-15

To establish the reliability and validity of the translated version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) by evaluating its psychometric properties and to determine possible differences among nurses and physicians regarding safety attitudes. A cross-sectional study utilising the Albanian version of the SAQ and a demographic questionnaire. Four regional hospitals in Albania. 341 healthcare providers, including 132 nurses and 209 doctors. The translation, construct validity and internal validity of the SAQ. The SAQ includes six scales and 30 items. A total of 341 valid questionnaires were returned, for a response rate of 70%. The confirmatory factor analysis and its goodness-of-fit indices (standardised root mean square residual 0.075, root mean square error of approximation 0.044 and comparative fit index 0.97) showed good model fit. The Cronbach's α values for each of the scales of the SAQ ranged from 0.64 to 0.82. The percentage of hospital healthcare workers who had a positive attitude was 60.3% for the teamwork climate, 57.2% for the safety climate, 58.4% for job satisfaction, 37.4% for stress recognition, 59.3% for the perception of management and 49.5% for working conditions. Intercorrelations showed that the subscales had moderate-to-high correlations with one another. Nurses were more hesitant to admit and report errors; only 55% of physicians and 44% of nurses endorsed this statement (χ(2)=4.9, p=0.02). Moreover, nurses received lower scores on team work compared with doctors (N 45.7 vs D 52.3, p=0.01). Doctors denied the effects of stress and fatigue on their performance (N 46.7 vs D 39.5, p<0.01), neglecting the workload. The SAQ is a useful tool for evaluating safety attitudes in Albanian hospitals. In light of the health workforce's poor recognition of stress, establishing patient safety programmes should be a priority among policymakers in Albania. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Weather Safety - NOAA's National Weather Service

Science.gov Websites

Statistical Models... MOS Prod GFS-LAMP Prod Climate Past Weather Predictions Weather Safety Weather Radio National Weather Service on FaceBook NWS on Facebook NWS Director Home > Safety Weather Safety This page weather safety. StormReady NOAA Weather Radio Emergency Managers Information Network U.S. Hazard Assmt

Got spirit? The spiritual climate scale, psychometric properties, benchmarking data and future directions.

PubMed

Doram, Keith; Chadwick, Whitney; Bokovoy, Joni; Profit, Jochen; Sexton, Janel D; Sexton, J Bryan

2017-02-11

Organizations that encourage the respectful expression of diverse spiritual views have higher productivity and performance, and support employees with greater organizational commitment and job satisfaction. Within healthcare, there is a paucity of studies which define or intervene on the spiritual needs of healthcare workers, or examine the effects of a pro-spirituality environment on teamwork and patient safety. Our objective was to describe a novel survey scale for evaluating spiritual climate in healthcare workers, evaluate its psychometric properties, provide benchmarking data from a large faith-based healthcare system, and investigate relationships between spiritual climate and other predictors of patient safety and job satisfaction. Cross-sectional survey study of US healthcare workers within a large, faith-based health system. Seven thousand nine hundred twenty three of 9199 eligible healthcare workers across 325 clinical areas within 16 hospitals completed our survey in 2009 (86% response rate). The spiritual climate scale exhibited good psychometric properties (internal consistency: Cronbach α = .863). On average 68% (SD 17.7) of respondents of a given clinical area expressed good spiritual climate, although assessments varied widely (14 to 100%). Spiritual climate correlated positively with teamwork climate (r = .434, p < .001) and safety climate (r = .489, p < .001). Healthcare workers reporting good spiritual climate were less likely to have intentions to leave, to be burned out, or to experience disruptive behaviors in their unit and more likely to have participated in executive rounding (p < .001 for each variable). The spiritual climate scale exhibits good psychometric properties, elicits results that vary widely by clinical area, and aligns well with other culture constructs that have been found to correlate with clinical and organizational outcomes.

Middle School Improvement and Reform: Development and Validation of a School-Level Assessment of Climate, Cultural Pluralism, and School Safety.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brand, Stephen; Felner, Robert; Shim, Minsuk; Seitsinger, Anne; Dumas, Thaddeus

2003-01-01

Examines the structure of perceived school climate and the relationship of climate dimensions to adaptation of students who attend middle-grade-level schools. The climate scales exhibited a stable dimensional structure, high levels of internal consistency, and moderate levels of stability. Ratings of multiple climate dimensions were associated…

The Direct and Moderating Role of School Interpersonal Climate on Children's Academic Outcomes in the Context of Whole-School, Social-Emotional Learning Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berg, Juliette K.; Aber, J. Lawrence

2015-01-01

A positive school climate is characterized by a supportive, orderly, and fair interpersonal climate. Children's perceptions of interpersonal climate and school safety are associated with several academic and behavioral adjustment outcomes. The current study has two goals: (1) to better understand the contribution of school interpersonal climate to…

Relationship between the Quality of Educational Facilities, School Climate, and School Safety of High School Tenth Graders in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bell, Darnell Brushawn

2011-01-01

The purpose of the study was to understand the relationships among facility conditions, school climate, and school safety of high school tenth graders in the United States. Previous research on the quality of educational facilities influence on student achievement has varied. Recent research has suggested that the quality of educational facilities…

'Speaking up' about patient safety concerns and unprofessional behaviour among residents: validation of two scales.

PubMed

Martinez, William; Etchegaray, Jason M; Thomas, Eric J; Hickson, Gerald B; Lehmann, Lisa Soleymani; Schleyer, Anneliese M; Best, Jennifer A; Shelburne, Julia T; May, Natalie B; Bell, Sigall K

2015-11-01

To develop and test the psychometric properties of two new survey scales aiming to measure the extent to which the clinical environment supports speaking up about (a) patient safety concerns and (b) unprofessional behaviour. Residents from six large US academic medical centres completed an anonymous, electronic survey containing questions regarding safety culture and speaking up about safety and professionalism concerns. Confirmatory factor analysis supported two separate, one-factor speaking up climates (SUCs) among residents; one focused on patient safety concerns (SUC-Safe scale) and the other focused on unprofessional behaviour (SUC-Prof scale). Both scales had good internal consistency (Cronbach's α>0.70) and were unique from validated safety and teamwork climate measures (r<0.85 for all correlations), a measure of discriminant validity. The SUC-Safe and SUC-Prof scales were associated with participants' self-reported speaking up behaviour about safety and professionalism concerns (r=0.21, p<0.001 and r=0.22, p<0.001, respectively), a measure of concurrent validity, while teamwork and safety climate scales were not. We created and provided evidence for the reliability and validity of two measures (SUC-Safe and SUC-Prof scales) associated with self-reported speaking up behaviour among residents. These two scales may fill an existing gap in residency and safety culture assessments by measuring the openness of communication about safety and professionalism concerns, two important aspects of safety culture that are under-represented in existing metrics. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Speaking up behaviors and safety climate in an Austrian university hospital.

PubMed

Schwappach, David; Sendlhofer, Gerald; Häsler, Lynn; Gombotz, Veronika; Leitgeb, Karina; Hoffmann, Magdalena; Jantscher, Lydia; Brunner, Gernot

2018-04-26

To analyze speaking up behavior and safety climate with a validated questionnaire for the first time in an Austrian university hospital. Survey amongst healthcare workers (HCW). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Cronbach's alpha was calculated as a measure of internal consistencies of scales. Analysis of variance and t-tests were used. The survey was conducted in 2017. About 2.149 HCW from three departments were asked to participate. To measure speaking up behavior and safety climate. To explore psychological safety, encouraging environment and resignation towards speaking up. About 859 evaluable questionnaires were returned (response rate: 40%). More than 50% of responders perceived specific concerns about patient safety within the last 4 weeks and observed a potential error or noticed rule violations. For the different items, between 16% and 42% of HCW reported that they remained silent though concerns for safety. In contrast, between 96% and 98% answered that they did speak up in certain situations. The psychological safety for speaking up was lower for HCW with a managerial function (P < 0.001). HCW with managerial functions perceived the environment as less encouraging to speak up (P < 0.05) than HCW without managerial function. We identified speaking up behaviors for the first time in an Austrian university hospital. Only moderately frequent concerns were in conflict with frequent speaking up behaviors. These results clearly show that a paradigm shift is needed to increase speaking up culture.

Antecedents of willingness to report medical treatment errors in health care organizations: a multilevel theoretical framework.

PubMed

Naveh, Eitan; Katz-Navon, Tal

2014-01-01

To avoid errors and improve patient safety and quality of care, health care organizations need to identify the sources of failures and facilitate implementation of corrective actions. Hence, health care organizations try to collect reports and data about errors by investing enormous resources in reporting systems. However, despite health care organizations' declared goal of increasing the voluntary reporting of errors and although the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 (S.544, Public Law 109-41) legalizes efforts to secure reporters from specific liabilities, the problem of underreporting of adverse events by staff members remains. The purpose of the paper is to develop a theory-based model and a set of propositions to understand the antecedents of staff members' willingness to report errors based on a literature synthesis. The model aims to explore a complex system of considerations employees use when deciding whether to report their errors or be silent about them. The model integrates the influences of three types of organizational climates (psychological safety, psychological contracts, and safety climate) and individual perceptions of the applicability of the organization's procedures and proposes their mutual influence on willingness to report errors and, as a consequence, patient safety. The model suggests that managers should try to control and influence both the way employees perceive procedure applicability and organizational context-i.e., psychological safety, no-blame contracts, and safety climate-to increase reporting and improve patient safety.

The communicative construction of safety in wildland firefighting

Treesearch

Jody Jahn; Linda L. Putnam; Anne E. Black

2012-01-01

This document is a summary of a mixed methods dissertation that examined the communicative construction of safety in wildland firefighting. For the dissertation, I used a two-study mixed methods approach, examining the communicative accomplishment of safety from two perspectives: high reliability organizing (Weick, Sutcliffe, & Obstfeld, 1999), and safety climate (...

MCPS School Safety & Security at a Glance 2011-2012

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2012

2012-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents. Information is presented for each Montgomery County (Maryland) public school. While much of this…

MCPS School Safety & Security at a Glance 2013-2014

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2014

2014-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents. Information is presented for each Montgomery County (Maryland) public school. While much of this…

MCPS School Safety & Security at a Glance 2012-2013

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2013

2013-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents. Information is presented for each Montgomery County (Maryland) public school. While much of this…

MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance 2007-2008

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2008

2008-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, including school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents in all Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools. The information is presented for…

Patient Safety Culture in Slovenian out-of-hours Primary Care Clinics.

PubMed

Klemenc-Ketiš, Zalika; Deilkås, Ellen Tveter; Hofoss, Dag; Bondevik, Gunnar Tschudi

2017-10-01

Patient safety culture is a concept which describes how leader and staff interaction, attitudes, routines and practices protect patients from adverse events in healthcare. We aimed to investigate patient safety culture in Slovenian out-of-hours health care (OOHC) clinics, and determine the possible factors that might be associated with it. This was a cross-sectional study, which took place in Slovenian OOHC, as part of the international study entitled Patient Safety Culture in European Out-of-Hours Services (SAFE-EUR-OOH). All the OOHC clinics in Slovenia (N=60) were invited to participate, and 37 agreed to do so; 438 employees from these clinics were invited to participate. We used the Slovenian version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire - an ambulatory version (SAQAV) to measure the climate of safety. Out of 438 invited participants, 250 answered the questionnaire (57.1% response rate). The mean overall score ± standard deviation of the SAQ was 56.6±16.0 points, of Perceptions of Management 53.6±19.6 points, of Job Satisfaction 48.5±18.3 points, of Safety Climate 59.1±22.1 points, of Teamwork Climate 72.7±16.6, and of Communication 51.5±23.4 points. Employees working in the Ravne na Koroškem region, employees with variable work shifts, and those with full-time jobs scored significantly higher on the SAQ-AV. The safety culture in Slovenian OOHC clinics needs improvement. The variations in the safety culture factor scores in Slovenian OOHC clinics point to the need to eliminate variations and improve working conditions in Slovenian OOHC clinics.

Organizational climate and culture: Reflections on the history of the constructs in the Journal of Applied Psychology.

PubMed

Schneider, Benjamin; González-Romá, Vicente; Ostroff, Cheri; West, Michael A

2017-03-01

We review the literature on organizational climate and culture paying specific attention to articles published in the Journal of Applied Psychology (JAP) since its first volume in 1917. The article traces the history of the 2 constructs though JAP has been far more important for climate than culture research. We distinguish 4 main periods: the pre-1971 era, with pioneering work on exploring conceptualization and operationalizations of the climate construct; the 1971-1985 era, with foundational work on aggregation issues, outcome-focused climates (on safety and service) and early writings on culture; the 1986-1999 era, characterized by solidification of a focused climate approach to understanding organizational processes (justice, discrimination) and outcomes (safety, service) and the beginnings of survey approaches to culture; and the 2000-2014 era, characterized by multilevel work on climate, climate strength, demonstrated validity for a climate approach to outcomes and processes, and the relationship between leadership and climate and culture. We summarize and comment on the major theory and research achievements in each period, showing trends observed in the literature and how JAP has contributed greatly to moving research on these constructs, especially climate, forward. We also recommend directions for future research given the current state of knowledge. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Climate change and landscape development in post-closure safety assessment of solid radioactive waste disposal: Results of an initiative of the IAEA.

PubMed

Lindborg, T; Thorne, M; Andersson, E; Becker, J; Brandefelt, J; Cabianca, T; Gunia, M; Ikonen, A T K; Johansson, E; Kangasniemi, V; Kautsky, U; Kirchner, G; Klos, R; Kowe, R; Kontula, A; Kupiainen, P; Lahdenperä, A-M; Lord, N S; Lunt, D J; Näslund, J-O; Nordén, M; Norris, S; Pérez-Sánchez, D; Proverbio, A; Riekki, K; Rübel, A; Sweeck, L; Walke, R; Xu, S; Smith, G; Pröhl, G

2018-03-01

The International Atomic Energy Agency has coordinated an international project addressing climate change and landscape development in post-closure safety assessments of solid radioactive waste disposal. The work has been supported by results of parallel on-going research that has been published in a variety of reports and peer reviewed journal articles. The project is due to be described in detail in a forthcoming IAEA report. Noting the multi-disciplinary nature of post-closure safety assessments, here, an overview of the work is given to provide researchers in the broader fields of radioecology and radiological safety assessment with a review of the work that has been undertaken. It is hoped that such dissemination will support and promote integrated understanding and coherent treatment of climate change and landscape development within an overall assessment process. The key activities undertaken in the project were: identification of the key processes that drive environmental change (mainly those associated with climate and climate change), and description of how a relevant future may develop on a global scale; development of a methodology for characterising environmental change that is valid on a global scale, showing how modelled global changes in climate can be downscaled to provide information that may be needed for characterising environmental change in site-specific assessments, and illustrating different aspects of the methodology in a number of case studies that show the evolution of site characteristics and the implications for the dose assessment models. Overall, the study has shown that quantitative climate and landscape modelling has now developed to the stage that it can be used to define an envelope of climate and landscape change scenarios at specific sites and under specific greenhouse-gas emissions assumptions that is suitable for use in quantitative post-closure performance assessments. These scenarios are not predictions of the future, but are projections based on a well-established understanding of the important processes involved and their impacts on different types of landscape. Such projections support the understanding of, and selection of, plausible ranges of scenarios for use in post-closure safety assessments. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Measuring School Climate: Using Existing Data Tools on Climate and Effectiveness to Inform School Organizational Health

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Durham, Rachel E.; Bettencourt, Amie; Connolly, Faith

2014-01-01

Despite--or perhaps due to--the lack of consensus on its definition, there is abundant interest in and research on school climate. Researchers have determined that improving school climate is one way to increase academic achievement, school safety, school completion, teacher retention, healthy social interactions, and student well-being (Cohen,…

30 CFR 250.800 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Mineral Resources BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS AND SULPHUR OPERATIONS IN THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF Oil and Gas Production Safety Systems... environments. Production safety systems operated in subfreezing climates shall utilize equipment and procedures...

30 CFR 250.800 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Mineral Resources BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS AND SULPHUR OPERATIONS IN THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF Oil and Gas Production Safety Systems... environments. Production safety systems operated in subfreezing climates shall utilize equipment and procedures...

30 CFR 250.800 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Mineral Resources BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS AND SULPHUR OPERATIONS IN THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF Oil and Gas Production Safety Systems... environments. Production safety systems operated in subfreezing climates shall utilize equipment and procedures...

Saudi Arabian ICU safety culture and nurses' attitudes.

PubMed

Alayed, Abdulrahman S; Lööf, Helena; Johansson, Unn-Britt

2014-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to examine nurses' attitudes towards safety culture in six Saudi Arabian intensive care units (ICUs). The study is descriptive with a cross-sectional design. The Safety Attitude Questionnaire (SAQ)-ICU version was distributed and 216 completed questionnaires were returned. The findings provide a basis for further research on Saudi Arabian ICU safety culture. This study showed that the SAQ-ICU can be used to measure safety climate to identify areas for improvement according to nurse attitudes and perceptions. Findings indicate that ICU safety culture is an important issue that hospital managers should prioritise. The SAQ-ICU questionnaire, used to measure safety climate in Saudi Arabian ICUs, identifies service strengths and improvement areas according to attitudes and perceptions. To the knowledge, this is the first study to use SAQ to examine nurses' safety culture attitudes in Saudi Arabian ICUs. The present findings provide a baseline and further details about Saudi Arabian ICU safety. Study participants represented nine nationalities, indicating the nursing workforce's diversity, which is expected to continue in the future. Such a nursing cultural heterogeneity calls for further studies to examine and evaluate attitudes and values to improve ICU safety culture.

Climate change and food safety: an emerging issue with special focus on Europe.

PubMed

Miraglia, M; Marvin, H J P; Kleter, G A; Battilani, P; Brera, C; Coni, E; Cubadda, F; Croci, L; De Santis, B; Dekkers, S; Filippi, L; Hutjes, R W A; Noordam, M Y; Pisante, M; Piva, G; Prandini, A; Toti, L; van den Born, G J; Vespermann, A

2009-05-01

According to general consensus, the global climate is changing, which may also affect agricultural and livestock production. The potential impact of climate change on food security is a widely debated and investigated issue. Nonetheless, the specific impact on safety of food and feed for consumers has remained a less studied topic. This review therefore identifies the various food safety issues that are likely to be affected by changes in climate, particularly in Europe. Amongst the issues identified are mycotoxins formed on plant products in the field or during storage; residues of pesticides in plant products affected by changes in pest pressure; trace elements and/or heavy metals in plant products depending on changes in their abundance and availability in soils; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in foods following changes in long-range atmospheric transport and deposition into the environment; marine biotoxins in seafood following production of phycotoxins by harmful algal blooms; and the presence of pathogenic bacteria in foods following more frequent extreme weather conditions, such as flooding and heat waves. Research topics that are amenable to further research are highlighted.

MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance 2008-2009

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2009

2009-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents in all Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools. The information is presented for each school.…

MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance 2010-2011

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2011

2011-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents in all Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools. The information is presented for each school.…

MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance 2009-2010

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Montgomery County Public Schools, 2010

2010-01-01

"MCPS School Safety and Security at a Glance" provides, in a single document, information about the reporting of incidents related to school safety and security, school climate, local school safety program descriptions, and serious incidents in all Montgomery County (Maryland) public schools. The information is presented for each school.…

The contribution of parents' driving behavior, family climate for road safety, and parent-targeted intervention to young male driving behavior.

PubMed

Taubman-Ben-Ari, Orit; Musicant, Oren; Lotan, Tsippy; Farah, Haneen

2014-11-01

One of the prominent issues in contemporary research on young drivers deals with the mechanisms underlying parents' influences on their offspring's driving behavior. The present study combines two sets of data: the first gathered from in-vehicle data recorders tracking the driving of parents and their teenage sons, and the second derived from self-report questionnaires completed by the young drivers. The aim was to evaluate the contribution of parents' driving behavior, participation in a parent-targeted intervention, and the teen drivers' perception of the family climate for road safety, to the driving behavior of young drivers during solo driving. The data was collected over the course of 12 months, beginning with the licensure of the teen driver, and examined a sample of 166 families who were randomly assigned to one of three intervention groups (receiving different forms of feedback) or a control group (with no feedback). Findings indicate that young male drivers' risky driving events rate was positively associated with that of their parents. In addition, any type of intervention led to a lower rate of risky driving events among young drivers compared to the control group. Finally, a higher perception of parents as not committed to safety and lower perceived parental monitoring were related to a higher risky driving events rate among young drivers. The results highlight the need to consider a complex set of antecedents in parents' attitudes and behavior, as well as the family's safety atmosphere, in order to better understand young drivers' risky driving. The practical implications refer to the effective use of the family as a lever in the attempt to promote safety awareness among young drivers. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Climate change and wildland firefighter health and safety.

PubMed

Withen, Patrick

2015-02-01

The author examines how climate change is impacting wildland firefighters. Climate change has made wildland fires more frequent and more intense. The increase in frequency and intensity of fires has pushed the number of fatalities and injuries higher in recent decades. The most common hazards on fires follow the trend of fire in general in that these hazards become more frequent and intense. Burnovers, heat exhaustion, tree hazards, and many other common fire hazards are more likely. The fire suppression agencies are making every effort to improve health and safety on fires by improving communication, weather forecasting, mapping, fire shelters, decision making and more. Despite these efforts, wildfires are becoming ever more hazardous because of climate change and the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires. © 2015 SAGE Publications.

Climate change and corn susceptibility to mycotoxins

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Maize is an essential part of the world’s grain supply, but climate change has the potential to increase maize susceptibility to mycotoxigenic fungal pathogens and reduce food security and safety. While rising atmospheric [CO2] is a driving force of climate change, our understanding of how elevated ...

Probable Maximum Precipitation in the U.S. Pacific Northwest in a Changing Climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xiaodong; Hossain, Faisal; Leung, L. Ruby

2017-11-01

The safety of large and aging water infrastructures is gaining attention in water management given the accelerated rate of change in landscape, climate, and society. In current engineering practice, such safety is ensured by the design of infrastructure for the Probable Maximum Precipitation (PMP). Recently, several numerical modeling approaches have been proposed to modernize the conventional and ad hoc PMP estimation approach. However, the underlying physics have not been fully investigated and thus differing PMP estimates are sometimes obtained without physics-based interpretations. In this study, we present a hybrid approach that takes advantage of both traditional engineering practice and modern climate science to estimate PMP for current and future climate conditions. The traditional PMP approach is modified and applied to five statistically downscaled CMIP5 model outputs, producing an ensemble of PMP estimates in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) during the historical (1970-2016) and future (2050-2099) time periods. The hybrid approach produced consistent historical PMP estimates as the traditional estimates. PMP in the PNW will increase by 50% ± 30% of the current design PMP by 2099 under the RCP8.5 scenario. Most of the increase is caused by warming, which mainly affects moisture availability through increased sea surface temperature, with minor contributions from changes in storm efficiency in the future. Moist track change tends to reduce the future PMP. Compared with extreme precipitation, PMP exhibits higher internal variability. Thus, long-time records of high-quality data in both precipitation and related meteorological fields (temperature, wind fields) are required to reduce uncertainties in the ensemble PMP estimates.

Climate Change and Food Safety: Beyond Production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ziska, L. H.; Crimmins, A. R.

2016-12-01

There is merited interest in determining the extent of climate disruption on agricultural production and food security. However, additional aspects of food security, including food safety, nutrition and distribution have, overall, received less attention. Beginning in 2013, the U.S. Global Change Research Program as part of the ongoing National Climate Assessment, began a directed effort to evaluate the vulnerability of climate change to these under-represented aspects of food security for developed countries. Based on this extensive review of current science, several key findings were developed: (a) Climate change, including rising temperatures and changes in weather extremes, is expected to increase the exposure of food to certain pathogens and toxins; (b) Climate change will increase human exposure to chemical contaminants in food through several pathways; (c) The nutritional value of agriculturally important food crops, including cereals, will decrease in response to the ongoing increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide; (d) Increases in the frequency or intensity of extreme weather events associated with climate change may disrupt food distribution. These findings will be presented as a means to describe the state of the science and expand on food security research in the broader context of public health and climate change.

Implications of Climate Change for Children in Developing Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanna, Rema; Oliva, Paulina

2016-01-01

Climate change may be particularly dangerous for children in developing countries. Even today, many developing countries experience a disproportionate share of extreme weather, and they are predicted to suffer disproportionately from the effects of climate change in the future. Moreover, developing countries often have limited social safety nets,…

NCO Production Management Branch

Science.gov Websites

Climate Climate Prediction Climate Archives Weather Safety Storm Ready NOAA Central Library Photo Library Management Branch Production Management Branch About the Production Management Branch NCO REQUEST FOR CHANGE (RFC) DATABASE ACCESS NCO Request For Change (RFC) Archive [For INTERNAL Use Only] NCO Request For

A Brief Measure of Adolescent Perceptions of School Climate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Nick; La Salle, Tamika; Ashby, Jeffrey S.; Meyers, Joel

2014-01-01

Student perceptions of school climate represent the ways students feel about the school environment. These include perceptions regarding safety, teaching and learning, and relationships within the school. It has been found that student perceptions of school climate are positively correlated with academic achievement (Brookover et al., 1978), and…

Fatal Exertional Heat Stroke and American Football Players: The Need for Regional Heat-Safety Guidelines.

PubMed

Grundstein, Andrew J; Hosokawa, Yuri; Casa, Douglas J

2018-01-01

  Weather-based activity modification in athletics is an important way to minimize heat illnesses. However, many commonly used heat-safety guidelines include a uniform set of heat-stress thresholds that do not account for geographic differences in acclimatization.   To determine if heat-related fatalities among American football players occurred on days with unusually stressful weather conditions based on the local climate and to assess the need for regional heat-safety guidelines.   Cross-sectional study.   Data from incidents of fatal exertional heat stroke (EHS) in American football players were obtained from the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research and the Korey Stringer Institute.   Sixty-one American football players at all levels of competition with fatal EHSs from 1980 to 2014.   We used the wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and a z-score WBGT standardized to local climate conditions from 1991 to 2010 to assess the absolute and relative magnitudes of heat stress, respectively.   We observed a poleward decrease in exposure WBGTs during fatal EHSs. In milder climates, 80% of cases occurred at above-average WBGTs, and 50% occurred at WBGTs greater than 1 standard deviation from the long-term mean; however, in hotter climates, half of the cases occurred at near average or below average WBGTs.   The combination of lower exposure WBGTs and frequent extreme climatic values in milder climates during fatal EHSs indicates the need for regional activity-modification guidelines with lower, climatically appropriate weather-based thresholds. Established activity-modification guidelines, such as those from the American College of Sports Medicine, work well in the hotter climates, such as the southern United States, where hot and humid weather conditions are common.

LGBT Educators' Perceptions of School Climate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Tiffany E.

2010-01-01

A national survey of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) educators examined differences of perceptions within seven identified factors: homophobia, principal support, policies of bullying language, policies of human rights, job safety, personal safety, and outness. It found that safety is best understood in two dimensions: personal…

Intelligent walkers for the elderly: performance and safety testing of VA-PAMAID robotic walker.

PubMed

Rentschler, Andrew J; Cooper, Rory A; Blasch, Bruce; Boninger, Michael L

2003-01-01

A walker that could help navigate and avoid collisions with obstacles could help reduce health costs and increase the quality of care and independence of thousands of people. This study evaluated the safety and performance of the Veterans Affairs Personal Adaptive Mobility Aid (VA-PAMAID). We performed engineering tests on the VA-PAMAID to determine safety factors, including stability, energy consumption, fatigue life, and sensor and control malfunctions. The VA-PAMAID traveled 10.9 km on a full charge and avoided obstacles while traveling at a speed of up to 1.2 m/s. No failures occurred during static stability, climatic, or fatigue testing. Some problems were encountered during obstacle climbing and sensor and control testing. The VA-PAMAID has good range, has adequate reaction time, and is structurally sound. Clinical trials are planned to compare the device to other low-technical adaptive mobility devices.

High resolution climate projection of storm surge at the Venetian coast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mel, R.; Sterl, A.; Lionello, P.

2013-04-01

Climate change impact on storm surge regime is of great importance for the safety and maintenance of Venice. In this study a future storm surge scenario is evaluated using new high resolution sea level pressure and wind data recently produced by EC-Earth, an Earth System Model based on the operational seasonal forecast system of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). The study considers an ensemble of six 5 yr long simulations of the rcp45 scenario at 0.25° resolution and compares the 2094-2098 to the 2004-2008 period. EC-Earth sea level pressure and surface wind fields are used as input for a shallow water hydrodynamic model (HYPSE) which computes sea level and barotropic currents in the Adriatic Sea. Results show that a high resolution climate model is needed for producing realistic values of storm surge statistics and confirm previous studies in that they show little sensitivity of storm surge levels to climate change. However, some climate change signals are detected, such as increased persistence of high pressure conditions, an increased frequency of windless hour, and a decreased number of moderate windstorms.

Relationship of safety climate perceptions and job satisfaction among employees in the construction industry: the moderating role of age.

PubMed

Stoilkovska, Biljana Blaževska; Žileska Pančovska, Valentina; Mijoski, Goran

2015-01-01

This study examines the degree to which construction sector employees perceive that safety is important in their organizations/sites and how job satisfaction affects these perceptions when age is introduced as a moderator variable. Two-way analysis of variance demonstrated that job satisfaction has a strong effect on perceived management commitment to work safety and that this relationship was moderated by respondents' age. Job satisfaction was associated with perceived accident rate and safety inspection frequency, but the proposed role of age in this linkage was not confirmed. Consequently, the findings indicated that by increasing the level of job satisfaction, perceptions of these safety climate aspects proved to be more positive. The conclusion is that these relationships could further lead to a lower percentage of accidents and injuries in the workplace and better health among employees. A significant relationship between job satisfaction, age and perceived co-workers' commitment to work safety was not found.

30 CFR 250.800 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., installed, used, maintained, and tested in a manner to assure the safety and protection of the human, marine, and coastal environments. Production safety systems operated in subfreezing climates shall utilize...

Climate change and the health impact of aflatoxins exposure in Portugal - an overview.

PubMed

Assunção, Ricardo; Martins, Carla; Viegas, Susana; Viegas, Carla; Jakobsen, Lea S; Pires, Sara; Alvito, Paula

2018-03-08

Climate change has been indicated as a driver for food safety issues worldwide, mainly due to the impact on the occurrence of food safety hazards at various stages of food chain. Mycotoxins, natural contaminants produced by fungi, are among the most important of such hazards. Aflatoxins, which have the highest acute and chronic toxicity of all mycotoxins, assume particular importance. A recent study predicted aflatoxin contamination in maize and wheat crops in Europe within the next 100 years and aflatoxin B1 is predicted to become a food safety issue in Europe, especially in the most probable scenario of climate change (+2°C). This review discusses the potential influence of climate change on the health risk associated to aflatoxins dietary exposure of Portuguese population. We estimated the burden of disease associated to the current aflatoxin exposure for Portuguese population in terms of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). It is expected that in the future the number of DALYs and the associated cases of hepatocellular carcinoma due to aflatoxins exposure will increase due to climate change. The topics highlighted through this review, including the potential impact on health of the Portuguese population through the dietary exposure to aflatoxins, should represent an alert for the potential consequences of an incompletely explored perspective of climate change. Politics and decision-makers should be involved and committed to implement effective measures to deal with climate change issues and to reduce its possible consequences. This review constitutes a contribution for the prioritisation of strategies to face the unequal burden of effects of weather-related hazards in Portugal and across Europe.

Variations in patient safety climate and perceived quality of collaboration between professions in out-of-hours care

PubMed Central

Klemenc-Ketis, Zalika; Deilkås, Ellen Tveter; Hofoss, Dag; Bondevik, Gunnar Tschudi

2017-01-01

Purpose To get an overview of health care workers perceptions of patient safety climates and the quality of collaboration in Slovenian out-of-hours health care (OOHC) between professional groups. Materials and methods This was a cross-sectional study carried out in all (60) Slovenian OOHC clinics; 37 (61.7%) agreed to participate with 438 employees. The questionnaire consisted of the Slovenian version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire – Ambulatory Version (SAQ-AV). Results The study sample consisted of 175 (70.0%) physicians, nurse practitioners, and practice nurses. Practice nurses reported the highest patient safety climate scores in all dimensions. Total mean (standard deviation) SAQ-AV score was 60.9±15.2. Scores for quality of collaboration between different professional groups were high. The highest mean scores were reported by nurse practitioners on collaboration with practice nurses (4.4±0.6). The lowest mean scores were reported by practice nurses on collaboration with nurse practitioners (3.8±0.9). Conclusion Due to large variations in Slovenian OOHC clinics with regard to how health care workers from different professional backgrounds perceive safety culture, more attention should be devoted to improving the team collaboration in OOHC. A clearer description of professional team roles should be provided. PMID:29184416

Effects of organizational safety practices and perceived safety climate on PPE usage, engineering controls, and adverse events involving liquid antineoplastic drugs among nurses.

PubMed

DeJoy, David M; Smith, Todd D; Woldu, Henok; Dyal, Mari-Amanda; Steege, Andrea L; Boiano, James M

2017-07-01

Antineoplastic drugs pose risks to the healthcare workers who handle them. This fact notwithstanding, adherence to safe handling guidelines remains inconsistent and often poor. This study examined the effects of pertinent organizational safety practices and perceived safety climate on the use of personal protective equipment, engineering controls, and adverse events (spill/leak or skin contact) involving liquid antineoplastic drugs. Data for this study came from the 2011 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Health and Safety Practices Survey of Healthcare Workers which included a sample of approximately 1,800 nurses who had administered liquid antineoplastic drugs during the past seven days. Regression modeling was used to examine predictors of personal protective equipment use, engineering controls, and adverse events involving antineoplastic drugs. Approximately 14% of nurses reported experiencing an adverse event while administering antineoplastic drugs during the previous week. Usage of recommended engineering controls and personal protective equipment was quite variable. Usage of both was better in non-profit and government settings, when workers were more familiar with safe handling guidelines, and when perceived management commitment to safety was higher. Usage was poorer in the absence of specific safety handling procedures. The odds of adverse events increased with number of antineoplastic drugs treatments and when antineoplastic drugs were administered more days of the week. The odds of such events were significantly lower when the use of engineering controls and personal protective equipment was greater and when more precautionary measures were in place. Greater levels of management commitment to safety and perceived risk were also related to lower odds of adverse events. These results point to the value of implementing a comprehensive health and safety program that utilizes available hazard controls and effectively communicates and demonstrates the importance of safe handling practices. Such actions also contribute to creating a positive safety climate.

Qualitative criteria and thresholds for low noise asphalt mixture design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vaitkus, A.; Andriejauskas, T.; Gražulytė, J.; Šernas, O.; Vorobjovas, V.; Kleizienė, R.

2018-05-01

Low noise asphalt pavements are cost efficient and cost effective alternative for road traffic noise mitigation comparing with noise barriers, façade insulation and other known noise mitigation measures. However, design of low noise asphalt mixtures strongly depends on climate and traffic peculiarities of different regions. Severe climate regions face problems related with short durability of low noise asphalt mixtures in terms of considerable negative impact of harsh climate conditions (frost-thaw, large temperature fluctuations, hydrological behaviour, etc.) and traffic (traffic loads, traffic volumes, studded tyres, etc.). Thus there is a need to find balance between mechanical and acoustical durability as well as to ensure adequate pavement skid resistance for road safety purposes. Paper presents analysis of the qualitative criteria and design parameters thresholds of low noise asphalt mixtures. Different asphalt mixture composition materials (grading, aggregate, binder, additives, etc.) and relevant asphalt layer properties (air void content, texture, evenness, degree of compaction, etc.) were investigated and assessed according their suitability for durable and effective low noise pavements. Paper concluded with the overview of requirements, qualitative criteria and thresholds for low noise asphalt mixture design for severe climate regions.

Survey Plan For Characterization of the Subsurface Underlying the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Volume 1 and 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Topic considered include: survey objectives; technologies for non-Invasive imaging of subsurface; cost; data requirements and sources; climatic condition; hydrology and geology; chemicals; magnetometry; electrical(resistivity, potential); optical-style imaging; reflection/refraction seismics; gravitometry; photo-acoustic activation;well drilling and borehole analysis; comparative assessment matrix; ground sensors; choice of the neutron sources; logistic of operations; system requirements; health and safety plans.

Perceptions of patient safety culture among healthcare employees in tertiary hospitals of Heilongjiang province in northern China: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Li, Ying; Zhao, Yanming; Hao, Yanhua; Jiao, Mingli; Ma, Hongkun; Teng, Baijun; Yang, Kai; Sun, Tongbo; Wu, Qunhong; Qiao, Hong

2018-04-19

Assessing the patient safety culture is necessary for improving patient safety. Research on patient safety culture has attracted considerable attention. Currently, there is little research on patient safety culture in China generally, and in Heilongjiang in northern China specifically. The aim of the study is to explore the perception of healthcare employees about patient safety culture and to determine whether perception differs per sex, age, profession, years of experience, education level and marital status. Cross-sectional study. Thirteen tertiary hospitals in Heilongjiang, northern China. About 1024 healthcare employees. The perception of healthcare employees was measured using the safety attitude questionnaire, which include six dimensions. Higher scores represented more positive attitudes. An analysis of variance was used to compare socio-demographic differences per position, marital status and education; t-tests were used for sex, age and experience. A total of 1024 (85.33%) valid questionnaires were returned. The mean score of the six dimensions was 73.74/100; work conditions (80.19) had the highest score of all the dimensions, and safety climate (70.48) had the lowest. Across distinct dimensions, there were significant differences in perceptions of patient safety culture per sex, age, years of experience, position, marital status and education level (P < 0.05). The findings can help in assessing perceived patient safety culture among healthcare employees and identifying dimensions that require improvement. Interventions aimed at specific socio-demographic groups are necessary to improve patient safety culture.

Advocating for Safe Schools, Positive School Climate, and Comprehensive Mental Health Services

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cowan, Katherine C.; Vaillancourt, Kelly

2013-01-01

The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, CT (USA) has brought the conversation about how to reduce violence, make schools safer, improve school climate, and increase access to mental health services to the forefront of the national conversation. Advocating for comprehensive initiatives to address school safety, school climate, and…

Exploring the impact of transformational leadership on nurse innovation behaviour: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Weng, Rhay-Hung; Huang, Ching-Yuan; Chen, Li-Mei; Chang, Li-Yu

2015-05-01

This study explored the influences of transformational leadership on nurse innovation behaviour and the mediating role of organisational climate. Recently, global nursing experts have been aggressively encouraging nurses to pursue innovation in nursing in order to improve nursing outcomes. Nursing innovation, in turn, is affected by nursing leadership. We employed a questionnaire survey to collect data, and selected a sample of nurses from hospitals in Taiwan. A total of 439 valid surveys were obtained. Hierarchical multiple regression model analysis was conducted to test the study hypothesis. The mean values of agreement of nurse innovation behaviour and transformational leadership were 3.40 and 3.78, respectively. Patient safety climate and innovation climate were found to have full mediating effects on the relationship between transformational leadership and innovation behaviour. Organisational climate has a significant impact on innovation behaviour. Transformational leadership has indirect effects on innovation behaviour via the mediation of patient safety climate and innovation climate. Hospitals should enhance transformational leadership by designing leadership training programmes and establishing transformational culture. In addition, nursing managers should foster nursing innovation through improvements in organisational climate. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The communicative construction of safety in wildland firefighting (Proceedings)

Treesearch

Jody Jahn

2012-01-01

This dissertation project used a two-study mixed methods approach, examining the communicative accomplishment of safety from two perspectives: high reliability organizing (Weick, Sutcliffe, & Obstfeld 1999), and safety climate (Zohar 1980). In Study One, 27 firefighters from two functionally similar wildland firefighting crews were interviewed about their crew-...

Work Safety Culture of Youth Farmworkers in North Carolina: A Pilot Study

PubMed Central

Kearney, Gregory D.; Rodriguez, Guadalupe; Quandt, Sara A.

2015-01-01

Objectives. We analyzed aspects of the behavioral, situational, and psychological elements of work safety culture of hired youth farmworkers in North Carolina. Methods. Data were from interviewer-administered questionnaires completed with 87 male and female hired farmworkers aged 10 to 17 years in North Carolina in 2013. We computed means, SDs, and Cronbach α values for the perceived work safety climate and safety perception summary scores. Results. Hired youth farmworkers in North Carolina described a negative work safety culture. Most engaged in unsafe general and unsafe work behaviors, few received training, and many were sexually harassed at work. They had mixed safety attitudes and knew that their employment was precarious. They reported a poor perceived work safety climate characterized by the perception that their supervisors “are only interested in doing the job fast and cheaply.” However, we could not detect statistically significant associations between work safety culture and injuries among these farmworkers. Conclusions. Increased scrutiny of agriculture as a suitable industry for workers as young as 10 years and additional regulations to protect hired youth farmworkers, if not to remove them from this environment, are warranted. Additional research is needed. PMID:25521896

Promoting a Culture of Safety as a Patient Safety Strategy

PubMed Central

Weaver, Sallie J.; Lubomksi, Lisa H.; Wilson, Renee F.; Pfoh, Elizabeth R.; Martinez, Kathryn A.; Dy, Sydney M.

2015-01-01

Developing a culture of safety is a core element of many efforts to improve patient safety and care quality. This systematic review identifies and assesses interventions used to promote safety culture or climate in acute care settings. The authors searched MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane, and EMBASE to identify relevant English-language studies published from January 2000 to October 2012. They selected studies that targeted health care workers practicing in inpatient settings and included data about change in patient safety culture or climate after a targeted intervention. Two raters independently screened 3679 abstracts (which yielded 33 eligible studies in 35 articles), extracted study data, and rated study quality and strength of evidence. Eight studies included executive walk rounds or interdisciplinary rounds; 8 evaluated multicomponent, unit-based interventions; and 20 included team training or communication initiatives. Twenty-nine studies reported some improvement in safety culture or patient outcomes, but measured outcomes were highly heterogeneous. Strength of evidence was low, and most studies were pre–post evaluations of low to moderate quality. Within these limits, evidence suggests that interventions can improve perceptions of safety culture and potentially reduce patient harm. PMID:23460092

The Safety Culture Enactment Questionnaire (SCEQ): Theoretical model and empirical validation.

PubMed

de Castro, Borja López; Gracia, Francisco J; Tomás, Inés; Peiró, José M

2017-06-01

This paper presents the Safety Culture Enactment Questionnaire (SCEQ), designed to assess the degree to which safety is an enacted value in the day-to-day running of nuclear power plants (NPPs). The SCEQ is based on a theoretical safety culture model that is manifested in three fundamental components of the functioning and operation of any organization: strategic decisions, human resources practices, and daily activities and behaviors. The extent to which the importance of safety is enacted in each of these three components provides information about the pervasiveness of the safety culture in the NPP. To validate the SCEQ and the model on which it is based, two separate studies were carried out with data collection in 2008 and 2014, respectively. In Study 1, the SCEQ was administered to the employees of two Spanish NPPs (N=533) belonging to the same company. Participants in Study 2 included 598 employees from the same NPPs, who completed the SCEQ and other questionnaires measuring different safety outcomes (safety climate, safety satisfaction, job satisfaction and risky behaviors). Study 1 comprised item formulation and examination of the factorial structure and reliability of the SCEQ. Study 2 tested internal consistency and provided evidence of factorial validity, validity based on relationships with other variables, and discriminant validity between the SCEQ and safety climate. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) carried out in Study 1 revealed a three-factor solution corresponding to the three components of the theoretical model. Reliability analyses showed strong internal consistency for the three scales of the SCEQ, and each of the 21 items on the questionnaire contributed to the homogeneity of its theoretically developed scale. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) carried out in Study 2 supported the internal structure of the SCEQ; internal consistency of the scales was also supported. Furthermore, the three scales of the SCEQ showed the expected correlation patterns with the measured safety outcomes. Finally, results provided evidence of discriminant validity between the SCEQ and safety climate. We conclude that the SCEQ is a valid, reliable instrument supported by a theoretical framework, and it is useful to measure the enactment of safety culture in NPPs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Relationships Among Student, Staff, and Administrative Measures of School Climate and Student Health and Academic Outcomes.

PubMed

Gase, Lauren N; Gomez, Louis M; Kuo, Tony; Glenn, Beth A; Inkelas, Moira; Ponce, Ninez A

2017-05-01

School climate is an integral part of a comprehensive approach to improving the well-being of students; however, little is known about the relationships between its different domains and measures. We examined the relationships between student, staff, and administrative measures of school climate to understand the extent to which they were related to each other and student outcomes. The sample included 33,572 secondary school students from 121 schools in Los Angeles County during the 2014-2015 academic year. A multilevel regression model was constructed to examine the association between the domains and measures of school climate and 5 outcomes of student well-being: depressive symptoms or suicidal ideation, tobacco use, alcohol use, marijuana use, and grades. Student, staff, and administrative measures of school climate were weakly correlated. Strong associations were found between student outcomes and student reports of engagement and safety, while school staff reports and administrative measures of school climate showed limited associations with student outcomes. As schools seek to measure and implement interventions aimed at improving school climate, consideration should be given to grounding these efforts in a multidimensional conceptualization of climate that values student perspectives and includes elements of both engagement and safety. © 2017, American School Health Association.

Relationships between Student, Staff, and Administrative Measures of School Climate and Student Health and Academic Outcomes

PubMed Central

Gase, Lauren Nichol; Gomez, Louis M.; Kuo, Tony; Glenn, Beth A.; Inkelas, Moira; Ponce, Ninez A.

2018-01-01

BACKGROUND School climate is an integral part of a comprehensive approach to improving the wellbeing of students; however, little is known about the relationships between its different domains and measures. This study examined the relationships between student, staff, and administrative measures of school climate in order to understand the extent to which they were related to each other and student outcomes. METHODS The sample included 33,572 secondary school students from 121 schools in Los Angeles County during the 2014–2015 academic year. A multilevel regression model was constructed to examine the association between the domains and measures of school climate and five outcomes of student wellbeing: depressive symptoms or suicidal ideation, tobacco use, alcohol use, marijuana use, and grades. RESULTS Student, staff, and administrative measures of school climate were weakly correlated. Strong associations were found between student outcomes and student reports of engagement and safety, while school staff reports and administrative measures of school climate showed limited associations with student outcomes. CONCLUSIONS As schools seek to measure and implement interventions aimed at improving school climate, consideration should be given to grounding these efforts in a multi-dimensional conceptualization of climate that values student perspectives and includes elements of both engagement and safety. PMID:28382671

Modeling the impact of climate change in Germany with biosphere models for long-term safety assessment of nuclear waste repositories.

PubMed

Staudt, C; Semiochkina, N; Kaiser, J C; Pröhl, G

2013-01-01

Biosphere models are used to evaluate the exposure of populations to radionuclides from a deep geological repository. Since the time frame for assessments of long-time disposal safety is 1 million years, potential future climate changes need to be accounted for. Potential future climate conditions were defined for northern Germany according to model results from the BIOCLIM project. Nine present day reference climate regions were defined to cover those future climate conditions. A biosphere model was developed according to the BIOMASS methodology of the IAEA and model parameters were adjusted to the conditions at the reference climate regions. The model includes exposure pathways common to those reference climate regions in a stylized biosphere and relevant to the exposure of a hypothetical self-sustaining population at the site of potential radionuclide contamination from a deep geological repository. The end points of the model are Biosphere Dose Conversion factors (BDCF) for a range of radionuclides and scenarios normalized for a constant radionuclide concentration in near-surface groundwater. Model results suggest an increased exposure of in dry climate regions with a high impact of drinking water consumption rates and the amount of irrigation water used for agriculture. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Parents' perceptions of the family climate for road safety.

PubMed

Taubman-Ben-Ari, Orit

2015-01-01

The current study examined the applicability of the Family Climate for Road Safety Scale (FCRSS; Taubman-Ben-Ari and Katz-Ben-Ami, 2013) to the parents of young drivers. The sample consisted of 549 parents and 234 of their children, all of whom completed the FCRSS. In addition, the parents completed the multidimensional driving style inventory (MDSI; Taubman-Ben-Ari et al., 2004) and provided background data (e.g., age, gender). Confirmatory factor analysis supported a slightly modified structure of the scale for parents. Examination of the correlations revealed significant weak to strong associations between parents' scores on the various FCRSS dimensions on the one hand, and their self-reported driving styles and offspring's perceptions of the family climate for safety on the other. The findings indicate that the FCRSS is suitable for use with the parents of young drivers, and that perceptions of the family climate are shared by the two generations. Furthermore, they show that family climate is related to parents' customary driving behavior, with the careful driving style positively related to the positive dimensions of the FCRSS. The discussion stresses the importance of the parents' influence on the manner in which their children drive, and the multifaceted nature of this influence. Moreover, it indicates the potential value of the FCRSS, both for research and for designing interventions and measuring their effectiveness. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An item-response theory approach to safety climate measurement: The Liberty Mutual Safety Climate Short Scales.

PubMed

Huang, Yueng-Hsiang; Lee, Jin; Chen, Zhuo; Perry, MacKenna; Cheung, Janelle H; Wang, Mo

2017-06-01

Zohar and Luria's (2005) safety climate (SC) scale, measuring organization- and group- level SC each with 16 items, is widely used in research and practice. To improve the utility of the SC scale, we shortened the original full-length SC scales. Item response theory (IRT) analysis was conducted using a sample of 29,179 frontline workers from various industries. Based on graded response models, we shortened the original scales in two ways: (1) selecting items with above-average discriminating ability (i.e. offering more than 6.25% of the original total scale information), resulting in 8-item organization-level and 11-item group-level SC scales; and (2) selecting the most informative items that together retain at least 30% of original scale information, resulting in 4-item organization-level and 4-item group-level SC scales. All four shortened scales had acceptable reliability (≥0.89) and high correlations (≥0.95) with the original scale scores. The shortened scales will be valuable for academic research and practical survey implementation in improving occupational safety. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Improving construction site safety through leader-based verbal safety communication.

PubMed

Kines, Pete; Andersen, Lars P S; Spangenberg, Soren; Mikkelsen, Kim L; Dyreborg, Johnny; Zohar, Dov

2010-10-01

The construction industry is one of the most injury-prone industries, in which production is usually prioritized over safety in daily on-site communication. Workers have an informal and oral culture of risk, in which safety is rarely openly expressed. This paper tests the effect of increasing leader-based on-site verbal safety communication on the level of safety and safety climate at construction sites. A pre-post intervention-control design with five construction work gangs is carried out. Foremen in two intervention groups are coached and given bi-weekly feedback about their daily verbal safety communications with their workers. Foremen-worker verbal safety exchanges (experience sampling method, n=1,693 interviews), construction site safety level (correct vs. incorrect, n=22,077 single observations), and safety climate (seven dimensions, n=105 questionnaires) are measured over a period of up to 42 weeks. Baseline measurements in the two intervention and three control groups reveal that foremen speak with their workers several times a day. Workers perceive safety as part of their verbal communication with their foremen in only 6-16% of exchanges, and the levels of safety at the sites range from 70-87% (correct observations). Measurements from baseline to follow-up in the two intervention groups reveal that safety communication between foremen and workers increases significantly in one of the groups (factor 7.1 increase), and a significant yet smaller increase is found when the two intervention groups are combined (factor 4.6). Significant increases in the level of safety are seen in both intervention groups (7% and 12% increases, respectively), particularly in regards to 'access ways' and 'railings and coverings' (39% and 84% increases, respectively). Increases in safety climate are seen in only one of the intervention groups with respect to their 'attention to safety.' No significant trend changes are seen in the three control groups on any of the three measures. Coaching construction site foremen to include safety in their daily verbal exchanges with workers has a significantly positive and lasting effect on the level of safety, which is a proximal estimate for work-related accidents. It is recommended that future studies include coaching and feedback at all organizational levels and for all involved parties in the construction process. Building client regulations could assign the task of coaching to the client appointed safety coordinators or a manager/supervisor, and studies should measure longitudinal effects of coaching by following foremen and their work gangs from site to site. Copyright © 2010 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Psychosocial safety climate: a multilevel theory of work stress in the health and community service sector.

PubMed

Dollard, M F; McTernan, W

2011-12-01

Work stress is widely thought to be a significant problem in the health and community services sector. We reviewed evidence from a range of different data sources that confirms this belief. High levels of psychosocial risk factors, psychological health problems and workers compensation claims for stress are found in the sector. We propose a multilevel theoretical model of work stress to account for the results. Psychosocial safety climate (PSC) refers to a climate for psychological health and safety. It reflects the balance of concern by management about psychological health v. productivity. By extending the health erosion and motivational paths of the Job Demands-Resources model we propose that PSC within work organisations predicts work conditions and in turn psychological health and engagement. Over and above this, however, we expect that the external environment of the sector particularly government policies, driven by economic rationalist ideology, is increasing work pressure and exhaustion. These conditions are likely to lead to a reduced quality of service, errors and mistakes.

Extreme Heat: A Prevention Guide to Promote Your Personal Health and Safety

MedlinePlus

... in your office, school, or home. Related Links Climate Change- Extreme Heat Heat Stress Illness Search Heat Stress Illness Data Temperature Extremes- Climate and Health Language: English (US) Español (Spanish) File ...

Does a permissive workplace substance use climate affect employees who do not use alcohol and drugs at work? A U.S. national study.

PubMed

Frone, Michael R

2009-06-01

The goal of this study was to begin exploring the relations of multiple dimensions of workplace substance use climate (substance availability, workplace descriptive norms, and workplace injunctive norms) to perceived workplace safety, work strain, and employee morale among employees who do not use alcohol or drugs at work. Data were collected from a probability sample of employed adults in the United States (N=2,051) who do not engage in workplace alcohol or drug use. The results showed that all three dimensions of workplace substance use climate were negatively related to workplace safety, positively related to work strain, and negatively related to employee morale. These results suggest that a permissive substance use climate at work may have broader relevance for the majority of employees who do not use alcohol and drugs at work. Copyright (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Organizational Determinants of Workplace Violence Against Hospital Workers.

PubMed

Arnetz, Judith; Hamblin, Lydia E; Sudan, Sukhesh; Arnetz, Bengt

2018-04-17

To identify organizational factors contributing to workplace violence in hospitals. A questionnaire survey was conducted in 2013 among employees in a Midwestern hospital system (n = 446 respondents). Questions concerned employees' experiences of violence at work in the previous year and perceptions of the organizational safety climate. Logistic regressions examined staff interaction and safety climate factors associated with verbal and physical violence, respectively. Interpersonal conflict was a risk factor for verbal violence (OR 1.49, 95% CI 1.04-2.12, p < .05) and low work efficiency was a risk factor for physical violence (OR .98, 0.97-0.99). A poor violence prevention climate was a risk factor for verbal (OR 0.48, 0.36-0.65, p < .001) and physical (OR 0.60, 0.45-0.82, p < .05) violence. Interventions should aim at improving coworker relationships, work efficiency, and management promotion of the hospital violence prevention climate.

The association between EMS workplace safety culture and safety outcomes.

PubMed

Weaver, Matthew D; Wang, Henry E; Fairbanks, Rollin J; Patterson, Daniel

2012-01-01

Prior studies have highlighted wide variation in emergency medical services (EMS) workplace safety culture across agencies. To determine the association between EMS workplace safety culture scores and patient or provider safety outcomes. We administered a cross-sectional survey to EMS workers affiliated with a convenience sample of agencies. We recruited these agencies from a national EMS management organization. We used the EMS Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (EMS-SAQ) to measure workplace safety culture and the EMS Safety Inventory (EMS-SI), a tool developed to capture self-reported safety outcomes from EMS workers. The EMS-SAQ provides reliable and valid measures of six domains: safety climate, teamwork climate, perceptions of management, working conditions, stress recognition, and job satisfaction. A panel of medical directors, emergency medical technicians and paramedics, and occupational epidemiologists developed the EMS-SI to measure self-reported injury, medical errors and adverse events, and safety-compromising behaviors. We used hierarchical linear models to evaluate the association between EMS-SAQ scores and EMS-SI safety outcome measures. Sixteen percent of all respondents reported experiencing an injury in the past three months, four of every 10 respondents reported an error or adverse event (AE), and 89% reported safety-compromising behaviors. Respondents reporting injury scored lower on five of the six domains of safety culture. Respondents reporting an error or AE scored lower for four of the six domains, while respondents reporting safety-compromising behavior had lower safety culture scores for five of the six domains. Individual EMS worker perceptions of workplace safety culture are associated with composite measures of patient and provider safety outcomes. This study is preliminary evidence of the association between safety culture and patient or provider safety outcomes.

The association between EMS workplace safety culture and safety outcomes

PubMed Central

Weaver, Matthew D.; Wang, Henry E.; Fairbanks, Rollin J.; Patterson, Daniel

2012-01-01

Objective Prior studies have highlighted wide variation in EMS workplace safety culture across agencies. We sought to determine the association between EMS workplace safety culture scores and patient or provider safety outcomes. Methods We administered a cross-sectional survey to EMS workers affiliated with a convenience sample of agencies. We recruited these agencies from a national EMS management organization. We used the EMS Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (EMS-SAQ) to measure workplace safety culture and the EMS Safety Inventory (EMS-SI), a tool developed to capture self-reported safety outcomes from EMS workers. The EMS-SAQ provides reliable and valid measures of six domains: safety climate, teamwork climate, perceptions of management, perceptions of working conditions, stress recognition, and job satisfaction. A panel of medical directors, paramedics, and occupational epidemiologists developed the EMS-SI to measure self-reported injury, medical errors and adverse events, and safety-compromising behaviors. We used hierarchical linear models to evaluate the association between EMS-SAQ scores and EMS-SI safety outcome measures. Results Sixteen percent of all respondents reported experiencing an injury in the past 3 months, four of every 10 respondents reported an error or adverse event (AE), and 90% reported safety-compromising behaviors. Respondents reporting injury scored lower on 5 of the 6 domains of safety culture. Respondents reporting an error or AE scored lower for 4 of the 6 domains, while respondents reporting safety-compromising behavior had lower safety culture scores for 5 of 6 domains. Conclusions Individual EMS worker perceptions of workplace safety culture are associated with composite measures of patient and provider safety outcomes. This study is preliminary evidence of the association between safety culture and patient or provider safety outcomes. PMID:21950463

Critical Climate: Relations among Sexual Harassment, Climate, and Outcomes for High School Girls and Boys

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ormerod, Alayne J.; Collinsworth, Linda L.; Perry, Leigh Ann

2008-01-01

This study examined the relationships among peer-to-peer sexual harassment, school climate, adult-to-student harassment, and outcomes (psychological and physical well-being; school withdrawal and safety) for high school girls (n = 310) and boys (n = 259) recruited from seven public high schools in a Midwestern state. More frequent, severe peer…

Trends in Cold Extremes and Winter Weather for the SPTC Region

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-05-31

Extreme weather poses multifaceted hazards to transportation. There is now increased awareness of the threats of climate variability and change on transportation safety and state of good repair. In particular, a non-stationary climate will potentiall...

Translating staff experience into organisational improvement: the HEADS-UP stepped wedge, cluster controlled, non-randomised trial

PubMed Central

Athanasiou, Thanos; Long, Susannah J; Beveridge, Iain; Sevdalis, Nick

2017-01-01

Objectives Frontline insights into care delivery correlate with patients’ clinical outcomes. These outcomes might be improved through near-real time identification and mitigation of staff concerns. We evaluated the effects of a prospective frontline surveillance system on patient and team outcomes. Design Prospective, stepped wedge, non-randomised, cluster controlled trial; prespecified per protocol analysis for high-fidelity intervention delivery. Participants Seven interdisciplinary medical ward teams from two hospitals in the UK. Intervention Prospective clinical team surveillance (PCTS): structured daily interdisciplinary briefings to capture staff concerns, with organisational facilitation and feedback. Main measures The primary outcome was excess length of stay (eLOS): an admission more than 24 hours above the local average for comparable patients. Secondary outcomes included safety and teamwork climates, and incident reporting. Mixed-effects models adjusted for time effects, age, comorbidity, palliation status and ward admissions. Safety and teamwork climates were measured with the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. High-fidelity PCTS delivery comprised high engagement and high briefing frequency. Results Implementation fidelity was variable, both in briefing frequency (median 80% working days/month, IQR 65%–90%) and engagement (median 70 issues/ward/month, IQR 34–113). 1714/6518 (26.3%) intervention admissions had eLOS versus 1279/4927 (26.0%) control admissions, an absolute risk increase of 0.3%. PCTS increased eLOS in the adjusted intention-to-treat model (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.10 to 1.58, p=0.003). Conversely, high-fidelity PCTS reduced eLOS (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.67 to 0.94, p=0.006). High-fidelity PCTS also increased total, high-yield and non-nurse incident reports (incidence rate ratios 1.28–1.79, all p<0.002). Sustained PCTS significantly improved safety and teamwork climates over time. Conclusions This study highlighted the potential benefits and pitfalls of ward-level interdisciplinary interventions. While these interventions can improve care delivery in complex, fluid environments, the manner of their implementation is paramount. Suboptimal implementation may have an unexpectedly negative impact on performance. Trial registration number ISRCTN 34806867 (http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN34806867). PMID:28720612

Modeling the Relationship between Safety Climate and Safety Performance in a Developing Construction Industry: A Cross-Cultural Validation Study

PubMed Central

Zahoor, Hafiz; Chan, Albert P. C.; Utama, Wahyudi P.; Gao, Ran; Zafar, Irfan

2017-01-01

This study attempts to validate a safety performance (SP) measurement model in the cross-cultural setting of a developing country. In addition, it highlights the variations in investigating the relationship between safety climate (SC) factors and SP indicators. The data were collected from forty under-construction multi-storey building projects in Pakistan. Based on the results of exploratory factor analysis, a SP measurement model was hypothesized. It was tested and validated by conducting confirmatory factor analysis on calibration and validation sub-samples respectively. The study confirmed the significant positive impact of SC on safety compliance and safety participation, and negative impact on number of self-reported accidents/injuries. However, number of near-misses could not be retained in the final SP model because it attained a lower standardized path coefficient value. Moreover, instead of safety participation, safety compliance established a stronger impact on SP. The study uncovered safety enforcement and promotion as a novel SC factor, whereas safety rules and work practices was identified as the most neglected factor. The study contributed to the body of knowledge by unveiling the deviations in existing dimensions of SC and SP. The refined model is expected to concisely measure the SP in the Pakistani construction industry, however, caution must be exercised while generalizing the study results to other developing countries. PMID:28350366

Modeling the Relationship between Safety Climate and Safety Performance in a Developing Construction Industry: A Cross-Cultural Validation Study.

PubMed

Zahoor, Hafiz; Chan, Albert P C; Utama, Wahyudi P; Gao, Ran; Zafar, Irfan

2017-03-28

This study attempts to validate a safety performance (SP) measurement model in the cross-cultural setting of a developing country. In addition, it highlights the variations in investigating the relationship between safety climate (SC) factors and SP indicators. The data were collected from forty under-construction multi-storey building projects in Pakistan. Based on the results of exploratory factor analysis, a SP measurement model was hypothesized. It was tested and validated by conducting confirmatory factor analysis on calibration and validation sub-samples respectively. The study confirmed the significant positive impact of SC on safety compliance and safety participation , and negative impact on number of self-reported accidents/injuries . However, number of near-misses could not be retained in the final SP model because it attained a lower standardized path coefficient value. Moreover, instead of safety participation , safety compliance established a stronger impact on SP. The study uncovered safety enforcement and promotion as a novel SC factor, whereas safety rules and work practices was identified as the most neglected factor. The study contributed to the body of knowledge by unveiling the deviations in existing dimensions of SC and SP. The refined model is expected to concisely measure the SP in the Pakistani construction industry, however, caution must be exercised while generalizing the study results to other developing countries.

Teamwork in the operating room: frontline perspectives among hospitals and operating room personnel.

PubMed

Sexton, J Bryan; Makary, Martin A; Tersigni, Anthony R; Pryor, David; Hendrich, Ann; Thomas, Eric J; Holzmueller, Christine G; Knight, Andrew P; Wu, Yun; Pronovost, Peter J

2006-11-01

The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations is proposing that hospitals measure culture beginning in 2007. However, a reliable and widely used measurement tool for the operating room (OR) setting does not currently exist. OR personnel in 60 US hospitals were surveyed using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. The teamwork climate domain of the survey uses six items about difficulty speaking up, conflict resolution, physician-nurse collaboration, feeling supported by others, asking questions, and heeding nurse input. To justify grouping individual-level responses to a single score at each hospital OR level, the authors used a multilevel confirmatory factor analysis, intraclass correlations, within-group interrater reliability, and Cronbach's alpha. To detect differences at the hospital OR level and by caregiver type, the authors used multivariate analysis of variance (items) and analysis of variance (scale). The response rate was 77.1%. There was robust evidence for grouping individual-level respondents to the hospital OR level using the diverse set of statistical tests, e.g., Comparative Fit Index = 0.99, root mean squared error of approximation = 0.05, and acceptable intraclasss correlations, within-group interrater reliability values, and Cronbach's alpha = 0.79. Teamwork climate differed significantly by hospital (F59, 1,911 = 4.06, P < 0.001) and OR caregiver type (F4, 1,911 = 9.96, P < 0.001). Rigorous assessment of teamwork climate is possible using this psychometrically sound teamwork climate scale. This tool and initial benchmarks allow others to compare their teamwork climate to national means, in an effort to focus more on what excellent surgical teams do well.

Applying importance-performance analysis to patient safety culture.

PubMed

Lee, Yii-Ching; Wu, Hsin-Hung; Hsieh, Wan-Lin; Weng, Shao-Jen; Hsieh, Liang-Po; Huang, Chih-Hsuan

2015-01-01

The Sexton et al.'s (2006) safety attitudes questionnaire (SAQ) has been widely used to assess staff's attitudes towards patient safety in healthcare organizations. However, to date there have been few studies that discuss the perceptions of patient safety both from hospital staff and upper management. The purpose of this paper is to improve and to develop better strategies regarding patient safety in healthcare organizations. The Chinese version of SAQ based on the Taiwan Joint Commission on Hospital Accreditation is used to evaluate the perceptions of hospital staff. The current study then lies in applying importance-performance analysis technique to identify the major strengths and weaknesses of the safety culture. The results show that teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, stress recognition and working conditions are major strengths and should be maintained in order to provide a better patient safety culture. On the contrary, perceptions of management and hospital handoffs and transitions are important weaknesses and should be improved immediately. Research limitations/implications - The research is restricted in generalizability. The assessment of hospital staff in patient safety culture is physicians and registered nurses. It would be interesting to further evaluate other staff's (e.g. technicians, pharmacists and others) opinions regarding patient safety culture in the hospital. Few studies have clearly evaluated the perceptions of healthcare organization management regarding patient safety culture. Healthcare managers enable to take more effective actions to improve the level of patient safety by investigating key characteristics (either strengths or weaknesses) that healthcare organizations should focus on.

Associations between perceived crisis mode work climate and poor information exchange within hospitals.

PubMed

Patterson, Mark E; Bogart, Miller S; Starr, Kathleen R

2015-03-01

Because hospital units operating in crisis mode could create unsafe transitions of care due to miscommunication, our objective was to estimate associations between perceived crisis mode work climate and patient information exchange problems within hospitals. Self-reported data from 247,140 hospital staff members across 884 hospitals were obtained from the 2010 Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture. Presence of a crisis mode work climate was defined as respondents agreeing that the hospital unit in which they work tries to do too much too quickly. Presence of patient information exchange problems was defined as respondents agreeing that problems often occur in exchanging patient information across hospital units. Multivariable ordinal regressions estimated the likelihood of perceived problems in exchanging patient information across hospital units, controlling for perceived levels of crisis mode work climate, skill levels, work climate, and hospital infrastructure. Compared to those disagreeing, hospital staff members agreeing that the hospital unit in which they work tries to do too much too quickly were 1.6 times more likely to perceive problems in exchanging patient information across hospital units (odds ratio: 1.6, 95% confidence interval: 1.58-1.65). Hospital staff members perceiving crisis mode work climates within their hospital unit are more likely to perceive problems in exchanging patient information across units, underscoring the need to improve communication during transitions of care. © 2014 Society of Hospital Medicine.

Who trusts scientists for information about climate change? Nuclear power? Vaccines?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamilton, L.

2015-12-01

US public acceptance/rejection of science on the topic of climate change has become highly polarized, with a demographic profile well established through survey research. Trust in scientists for information about climate change tends to increase with education, decrease with age, and is higher among self-identified liberals and moderates than among conservatives. Demographic profiles of people who do or do not trust scientists regarding other disputed topics are less well established. Some observers have argued that certain domains such as vaccines, nuclear power or genetically modified organisms (GMOs) could present a mirror image of climate change, with liberals instead of conservatives disproportionately rejecting science on that topic. Evidence for this mirror-image hypothesis has been mainly anecdotal, however. Here we test it systematically using statewide survey data on more than 1200 interviews, comparing five similarly worded questions that ask respondents whether they trust, don't trust, or are unsure about scientists as a source of information about ... climate change, vaccines, evolution, nuclear power safety, or GMOs. Climate change proves to be the most polarized of these topics, but all five exhibit roughly similar age, education and ideological effects -- contrary to the mirror-image hypothesis. The common patterns across five science domains, chosen for their hypothetical contrasts, map out an unexpectedly cohesive picture of who trusts scientists for information, and who does not. Implications of these survey results for public outreach and science communication are explored.

Impacts of climate change on the microbial safety of pre-harvest leafy green vegetables as indicated by Escherichia coli O157 and Salmonella spp.

PubMed

Liu, Cheng; Hofstra, Nynke; Franz, Eelco

2013-05-15

The likelihood of leafy green vegetable (LGV) contamination and the associated pathogen growth and survival are strongly related to climatic conditions. Particularly temperature increase and precipitation pattern changes have a close relationship not only with the fate and transport of enteric bacteria, but also with their growth and survival. Using all relevant literature, this study reviews and synthesises major impacts of climate change (temperature increases and precipitation pattern changes) on contamination sources (manure, soil, surface water, sewage and wildlife) and pathways of foodborne pathogens (focussing on Escherichia coli O157 and Salmonella spp.) on pre-harvested LGVs. Whether climate change increases their prevalence depends not only on the resulting local balance of the positive and negative impacts but also on the selected regional climate change scenarios. However, the contamination risks are likely to increase. This review shows the need for quantitative modelling approaches with scenario analyses and additional laboratory experiments. This study gives an extensive overview of the impacts of climate change on the contamination of pre-harvested LGVs and shows that climate change should not be ignored in food safety management and research. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Relationship Between Naval Aviation Mishaps and Squadron Maintenance Safety Climate

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-12-01

automobile and personal safety. The Safety Department strives to ensure that safety is emphasized and is viewed by all squadron members as...Quessenberry & Boyer, 2004). These informal rules and personal values can influence the developed culture within a squadron, both positively and...management will lower morale and cause employees to get frustrated and pessimistic with the process in general. Reaction may also hold the person who

10 CFR 300.11 - Independent verification.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY CLIMATE CHANGE VOLUNTARY GREENHOUSE GAS REPORTING PROGRAM: GENERAL GUIDELINES § 300.11..., Health and Safety Auditor Certification: California Climate Action Registry; Clean Development Mechanism... statements (or lack thereof) of any significant changes in entity boundaries, products, or processes; (iii...

10 CFR 300.11 - Independent verification.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY CLIMATE CHANGE VOLUNTARY GREENHOUSE GAS REPORTING PROGRAM: GENERAL GUIDELINES § 300.11..., Health and Safety Auditor Certification: California Climate Action Registry; Clean Development Mechanism... statements (or lack thereof) of any significant changes in entity boundaries, products, or processes; (iii...

10 CFR 300.11 - Independent verification.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY CLIMATE CHANGE VOLUNTARY GREENHOUSE GAS REPORTING PROGRAM: GENERAL GUIDELINES § 300.11..., Health and Safety Auditor Certification: California Climate Action Registry; Clean Development Mechanism... statements (or lack thereof) of any significant changes in entity boundaries, products, or processes; (iii...

Safety Plan for Schools: No Guns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shah, Nirvi

2013-01-01

In a pre-emptive move against a school safety proposal from the National Rifle Association that is expected to include a call for more people trained and approved to carry guns at schools, a coalition of civil rights and education groups unveiled its own safety plan last week. It seeks the creation of positive school climates, thoughtful and…

Organizational Climate Determinants of Resident Safety Culture in Nursing Homes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arnetz, Judith E.; Zhdanova, Ludmila S.; Elsouhag, Dalia; Lichtenberg, Peter; Luborsky, Mark R.; Arnetz, Bengt B.

2011-01-01

Purpose of the Study: In recent years, there has been an increasing focus on the role of safety culture in preventing costly adverse events, such as medication errors and falls, among nursing home residents. However, little is known regarding critical organizational determinants of a positive safety culture in nursing homes. The aim of this study…

School Safety in a Post-Sandy Hook World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trump, Kenneth S.

2014-01-01

In this report the author, who is a school safety expert, provides information about school safety in a post-Sandy Hook world. He presents the following: (1) Continuum of Threats and Responses; (2) The role social media plays; (3) Reliable Best Practices; (4) Policy and Funding--Climate and Context; (5) Policy and Funding--Things to Avoid; and (6)…

Safety climate and the theory of planned behavior: towards the prediction of unsafe behavior.

PubMed

Fogarty, Gerard J; Shaw, Andrew

2010-09-01

The present study is concerned with the human factors that contribute to violations in aviation maintenance. Much of our previous research in this area has been based on safety climate surveys and the analysis of relations among core dimensions of climate. In this study, we tap into mainstream psychological theory to help clarify the mechanisms underlying the links between climate and behavior. Specifically, we demonstrate the usefulness of Ajzen's (1991, 2001) Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to understanding violation behaviors in aircraft maintenance. A questionnaire was administered to 307 aircraft maintenance workers. Constructs measured by the survey included perceptions of management attitudes to safety, own attitudes to violations, intention to violate, group norms, workplace pressures, and violations. A model based on the TPB illustrated hypothetical connections among these variables. Path analyses using AMOS suggested some theoretically justifiable modifications to the model. Fit statistics of the revised model were excellent with intentions, group norms, and personal attitudes combining to explain 50% of the variance in self-reported violations. The model highlighted the importance of management attitudes and group norms as direct and indirect predictors of violation behavior. We conclude that the TPB is a useful tool for understanding the psychological background to the procedural violations so often associated with incidents and accidents. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Corridor-wide Safety Data Analysis and Identification of Existing Successful Safety Programs

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-06-01

Many diverse factors contribute to motor vehicle crashes. States have multiple competing priorities and limited resources to address these priorities, so there is a need, particularly in our current economic climate, to prioritize interventions and s...

Predictors of Attitudes Toward Non-Technical Skills in Farming.

PubMed

Irwin, Amy; Poots, Jill

2018-01-01

Farming is a high-risk sector with up to 170,000 worldwide fatalities reported per year; it is therefore vital to identify methods of mitigating the dangers of this industry. Research within high-risk industries, such as aviation, shipping, and agriculture, has identified the importance of non-technical skills (NTS) in maintaining effective, safe performance and reducing error and injury. However, there is a lack of research evaluating factors that may contribute to NTS attitudes and behaviors. As a first step to address this literature gap, the current study evaluated a range of individual and environmental factors as potential predictors of attitudes toward NTS in agriculture. A sample of 170 farmers from within the United Kingdom and Ireland were surveyed using an online questionnaire. The questionnaire included measures of personality, stress, attitudes toward safety (safety climate, motivation, and risk), environmental stressors (workload, work-life imbalance), and non-technical skills (team and lone worker). Attitudes toward safety climate, compliance, and motivation showed a significant association with both team-based and lone worker NTS. Conscientiousness correlated positively with the majority of the NTS elements. Multiple regression analysis indicated neuroticism and conscientiousness demonstrated capacity to predict NTS attitudes. Concerns about costs and equipment, attitudes toward safety climate, and safety motivation were also found to be significant predictors of NTS attitudes. The results indicate the utility of individual characteristics and environmental factors when predicting farming NTS attitudes. As a result, these elements could be important when evaluating engagement with NTS and developing NTS training initiatives in agriculture.

Factors predicting change in hospital safety climate and capability in a multi-site patient safety collaborative: a longitudinal survey study.

PubMed

Benn, Jonathan; Burnett, Susan; Parand, Anam; Pinto, Anna; Vincent, Charles

2012-07-01

The study had two specific objectives: (1) To analyse change in a survey measure of organisational patient safety climate and capability (SCC) resulting from participation in the UK Safer Patients Initiative and (2) To investigate the role of a range of programme and contextual factors in predicting change in SCC scores. Single group longitudinal design with repeated measurement at 12-month follow-up. Multiple service areas within NHS hospital sites across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Stratified sample of 284 respondents representing programme teams at 19 hospital sites. A complex intervention comprising a multi-component quality improvement collaborative focused upon patient safety and designed to impact upon hospital leadership, communication, organisation and safety climate. A survey including a 31-item SCC scale was administered at two time-points. Modest but significant positive movement in SCC score was observed between the study time-points. Individual programme responsibility, availability of early adopters, multi-professional collaboration and extent of process measurement were significant predictors of change in SCC. Hospital type and size, along with a range of programme preconditions, were not found to be significant. A range of social, cultural and organisational factors may be sensitive to this type of intervention but the measurable effect is small. Supporting critical local programme implementation factors may be an effective strategy in achieving development in organisational patient SCC, regardless of contextual factors and organisational preconditions.

A Systematic Review of Primary Care Safety Climate Survey Instruments: Their Origins, Psychometric Properties, Quality, and Usage.

PubMed

Curran, Ciara; Lydon, Sinéad; Kelly, Maureen; Murphy, Andrew; Walsh, Chloe; OʼConnor, Paul

2018-06-01

Safety climate (SC) measurement is a common and feasible method of proactive safety assessment in primary care. However, there is no consensus on which instrument is "best" to use. The aim of the study was to identify the origins, psychometric properties, quality, and SC domains measured by survey instruments used to assess SC in primary care settings. Systematic searches were conducted using Medline, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycInfo in February 2016. English-language, peer-reviewed studies that reported the development and/or use of a SC survey in a primary care setting were included. Two reviewers independently extracted data (survey characteristics, origins, and psychometric properties) from studies and applied the Quality Assessment Tool for Studies with Diverse Designs to assess methodological rigour. Safety climate domains within surveys were deductively analyzed and categorized into common healthcare SC themes. Seventeen SC surveys were identified, of which 16 had been adapted from 2 main U.S. hospital-based surveys. Only 1 survey was developed de novo for a primary care setting. The quantity and quality of psychometric testing varied considerably across the surveys. Management commitment to safety was the most frequently measured SC theme (87.5%). Workload was infrequently measured (25%). Valid and reliable instruments, which are context specific to the healthcare environment for intentional use, are essential to accurately assess SC. Key recommendations include further establishing the construct and criterion-related validity of existing instruments as opposed to developing additional surveys.

The Pacific Family and Food Safety: A Food Guide into the 21st Century.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Camacho, Mary Elaine; Aguon, Jane M.

The Food Safety First Program in Guam and the Marianas, sponsored in part by the United States Department of Agriculture, assesses the food safety behavior of the local population, and uses the results to develop educational programs. The thriving of bacteria in the local climate places extra importance on educating the population on the necessity…

Climate resilient crops for improving global food security and safety.

PubMed

Dhankher, Om Parkash; Foyer, Christine H

2018-05-01

Food security and the protection of the environment are urgent issues for global society, particularly with the uncertainties of climate change. Changing climate is predicted to have a wide range of negative impacts on plant physiology metabolism, soil fertility and carbon sequestration, microbial activity and diversity that will limit plant growth and productivity, and ultimately food production. Ensuring global food security and food safety will require an intensive research effort across the food chain, starting with crop production and the nutritional quality of the food products. Much uncertainty remains concerning the resilience of plants, soils, and associated microbes to climate change. Intensive efforts are currently underway to improve crop yields with lower input requirements and enhance the sustainability of yield through improved biotic and abiotic stress tolerance traits. In addition, significant efforts are focused on gaining a better understanding of the root/soil interface and associated microbiomes, as well as enhancing soil properties. © 2018 The Authors Plant, Cell & Environment Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

25 CFR 502.22 - Construction and maintenance of the gaming facility, and the operation of that gaming is...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... protect the environment and the public health and safety, including standards under a tribal-state compact... health and safety standards adopted by the tribe in light of climate, geography, and other local...

Overview of the Implementation of the Climate Data Initiative

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tilmes, C.; Goodman, H. M.; Privette, A. P.

2014-12-01

One of the efforts described in the President's Climate Action Plan is the Climate Data Initiative, a broad effort to leverage the federal government's extensive, freely-available climate-relevant data resources data to spur innovation and private-sector entrepreneurship in order to advance awareness of and preparedness for the impacts of climate change. The Climate Data Initiative, launched in March 2014, leverages commitments from government and the private sector to unleash data and make it accessible in ways that can be used by communities and companies to prepare for climate change. It builds on the White House's other Open Data Initiatives—in areas such as health, education, and safety. The Climate Data Initiative unleashes federal data relevant to addressing climate-related risks and vulnerabilities through the Climate.Data.gov web site. This talk will describe the Climate Data Initiative and its support and interactions with the Climate Resilience Toolkit.

An Overview of Occupational Risks From Climate Change.

PubMed

Applebaum, Katie M; Graham, Jay; Gray, George M; LaPuma, Peter; McCormick, Sabrina A; Northcross, Amanda; Perry, Melissa J

2016-03-01

Changes in atmosphere and temperature are affecting multiple environmental indicators from extreme heat events to global air quality. Workers will be uniquely affected by climate change, and the occupational impacts of major shifts in atmospheric and weather conditions need greater attention. Climate change-related exposures most likely to differentially affect workers in the USA and globally include heat, ozone, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, other chemicals, pathogenic microorganisms, vector-borne diseases, violence, and wildfires. Epidemiologic evidence documents a U-, J-, or V-shaped relationship between temperature and mortality. Whereas heat-related morbidity and mortality risks are most evident in agriculture, many other outdoor occupational sectors are also at risk, including construction, transportation, landscaping, firefighting, and other emergency response operations. The toxicity of chemicals change under hyperthermic conditions, particularly for pesticides and ozone. Combined with climate-related changes in chemical transport and distribution, these interactions represent unique health risks specifically to workers. Links between heat and interpersonal conflict including violence require attention because they pose threats to the safety of emergency medicine, peacekeeping and humanitarian relief, and public safety professionals. Recommendations for anticipating how US workers will be most susceptible to climate change include formal monitoring systems for agricultural workers; modeling scenarios focusing on occupational impacts of extreme climate events including floods, wildfires, and chemical spills; and national research agenda setting focusing on control and mitigation of occupational susceptibility to climate change.

[Analysis and modelling of safety culture in a Mexican hospital by Markov chains].

PubMed

Velázquez-Martínez, J D; Cruz-Suárez, H; Santos-Reyes, J

2016-01-01

The objective of this study was to analyse and model the safety culture with Markov chains, as well as predicting and/or prioritizing over time the evolutionary behaviour of the safety culture of the health's staff in one Mexican hospital. The Markov chain theory has been employed in the analysis, and the input data has been obtained from a previous study based on the Safety Attitude Questionnaire (CAS-MX-II), by considering the following 6 dimensions: safety climate, teamwork, job satisfaction, recognition of stress, perception of management, and work environment. The results highlighted the predictions and/or prioritisation of the approximate time for the possible integration into the evolutionary behaviour of the safety culture as regards the "slightly agree" (Likert scale) for: safety climate (in 12 years; 24.13%); teamwork (8 years; 34.61%); job satisfaction (11 years; 52.41%); recognition of the level of stress (8 years; 19.35%); and perception of the direction (22 years; 27.87%). The work environment dimension was unable to determine the behaviour of staff information, i.e. no information cultural roots were obtained. In general, it has been shown that there are weaknesses in the safety culture of the hospital, which is an opportunity to suggest changes to the mandatory policies in order to strengthen it. Copyright © 2016 SECA. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Relationships between Climate, Process, and Performance in Continuous Quality Improvement Groups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilkens, Roxanne; London, Manuel

2006-01-01

This study examined relationships between group climate (participants' learning orientation, feelings of psychological safety, and self-disclosure), process (feedback and conflict), and performance in continuous quality improvement groups. Forty-nine participants in eight hospital groups were surveyed as the groups neared completion. Groups were…

Organizational Climate of Staff Working Conditions and Safety -- An Integrative Model

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-05-01

fosters innovation, and sustains the use of evidence - based medicine . As other researchers have suggested, there may be multiple climates within an...29. Shortell S, Zazzali J, Burns L, et al. Implementing evidence - based medicine : the role of market pressures, compensation incentives, and culture

Aflatoxin B1 contamination in maize in Europe increases due to climate change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Battilani, P.; Toscano, P.; van der Fels-Klerx, H. J.; Moretti, A.; Camardo Leggieri, M.; Brera, C.; Rortais, A.; Goumperis, T.; Robinson, T.

2016-04-01

Climate change has been reported as a driver for emerging food and feed safety issues worldwide and its expected impact on the presence of mycotoxins in food and feed is of great concern. Aflatoxins have the highest acute and chronic toxicity of all mycotoxins; hence, the maximal concentration in agricultural food and feed products and their commodities is regulated worldwide. The possible change in patterns of aflatoxin occurrence in crops due to climate change is a matter of concern that may require anticipatory actions. The aim of this study was to predict aflatoxin contamination in maize and wheat crops, within the next 100 years, under a +2 °C and +5 °C climate change scenario, applying a modelling approach. Europe was virtually covered by a net, 50 × 50 km grids, identifying 2254 meshes with a central point each. Climate data were generated for each point, linked to predictive models and predictions were run consequently. Aflatoxin B1 is predicted to become a food safety issue in maize in Europe, especially in the +2 °C scenario, the most probable scenario of climate change expected for the next years. These results represent a supporting tool to reinforce aflatoxin management and to prevent human and animal exposure.

Identifying work ability promoting factors for home care aides and assistant nurses.

PubMed

Larsson, Agneta; Karlqvist, Lena; Westerberg, Mats; Gard, Gunvor

2012-01-11

In workplace health promotion, all potential resources needs to be taken into consideration, not only factors relating to the absence of injury and the physical health of the workers, but also psychological aspects. A dynamic balance between the resources of the individual employees and the demands of work is an important prerequisite. In the home care services, there is a noticeable trend towards increased psychosocial strain on employees at work. There are a high frequency of work-related musculoskeletal disorders and injuries, and a low prevalence of sustainable work ability. The aim of this research was to identify factors promoting work ability and self-efficacy in care aides and assistant nurses within home care services. This study is based on cross-sectional data collected in a municipality in northern Sweden. Care aides (n = 58) and assistant nurses (n = 79) replied to a self-administered questionnaire (response rate 46%). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed to assess the influence of several independent variables on self-efficacy (model 1) and work ability (model 2) for care aides and assistant nurses separately. Perceptions of personal safety, self-efficacy and musculoskeletal wellbeing contributed to work ability for assistant nurses (R2adj of 0.36, p < 0.001), while for care aides, the safety climate, seniority and age contributed to work ability (R2adj of 0.29, p = 0.001). Self-efficacy was associated with the safety climate and the physical demands of the job in both professions (R2adj of 0.24, p = 0.003 for care aides), and also by sex and age for the assistant nurses (R2adj of 0.31, p < 0.001). The intermediate factors contributed differently to work ability in the two professions. Self-efficacy, personal safety and musculoskeletal wellbeing were important for the assistant nurses, while the work ability of the care aides was associated with the safety climate, but also with the non-changeable factors age and seniority. All these factors are important to acknowledge in practice and in further research. Proactive workplace interventions need to focus on potentially modifiable factors such as self-efficacy, safety climate, physical job demands and musculoskeletal wellbeing.

'Achieving ensemble': communication in orthopaedic surgical teams and the development of situation awareness--an observational study using live videotaped examples.

PubMed

Bleakley, Alan; Allard, Jon; Hobbs, Adrian

2013-03-01

Focused dialogue, as good communication between practitioners, offers a condition of possibility for development of high levels of situation awareness in surgical teams. This has been termed "achieving ensemble". Situation awareness grasps what is happening in time and space with regard to one's own unfolding work in relation to that of colleagues, and is necessary to maintain patient safety throughout a surgical list. We refined a typology, initially developed for use in studying the dynamics of teams in aviation safety, of 10 kinds of communication within two broad areas: 'Reports', or authoritative acts of communication setting up a monological or authoritative climate; and 'Requests', or facilitative acts of communication setting up a dialogical or participatory climate. We systematically mapped how orthopaedic surgical teams use verbal communication through analysis of videotaped operations using the typology. We asked: 'do orthopaedic surgical teams set up the conditions of possibility for the emergence of situation awareness through effective communication?' We found that orthopaedic surgical teams tend to produce monological rather than dialogical climates. Dialogue increases with more complex cases, but in routine work, communication levels are depressed and one-way, influenced by surgeons working within a traditionally hierarchical and authoritative culture. We suggest that such a monological climate inhibits development of situation awareness and then compromises patient safety. The same teams, however, generate potentially rich educational climates through exchange of profession-specific knowledge and skills, and we suggest that where technical skill exchange is good, non-technical or interpersonal communication skill levels can follow.

Intervention Effects on Safety Compliance and Citizenship Behaviors: Evidence from the Work, Family, and Health Study

PubMed Central

Hammer, Leslie B.; Johnson, Ryan C.; Crain, Tori L.; Bodner, Todd; Kossek, Ellen Ernst; Davis, Kelly; Kelly, Erin L.; Buxton, Orfeu M.; Karuntzos, Georgia; Chosewood, L. Casey; Berkman, Lisa

2015-01-01

We tested the effects of a work-family intervention on employee reports of safety compliance and organizational citizenship behaviors in 30 healthcare facilities using a group-randomized trial. Based on Conservation of Resources theory and the Work-Home Resources Model, we hypothesized that implementing a work-family intervention aimed at increasing contextual resources via supervisor support for work and family and employee control over work time would lead to improved personal resources and increased employee performance on the job in the form of self-reported safety compliance and organizational citizenship behaviors. Multilevel analyses used survey data from 1,524 employees at baseline, 6-month and 12-month post-intervention follow-ups. Significant intervention effects were observed for safety compliance at the 6-month and organizational citizenship behaviors at the 12-month follow-ups. More specifically, results demonstrate that the intervention protected against declines in employee self-reported safety compliance and organizational citizenship behaviors, compared to employees in the control facilities. The hypothesized mediators of perceptions of family supportive supervisor behaviors, control over work time, and work-family conflict (work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict) were not significantly improved by the intervention. However, baseline perceptions of family supportive supervisor behaviors, control over work time, and work-family climate were significant moderators of the intervention effect on the self-reported safety compliance and organizational citizenship behavior outcomes. PMID:26348479

Psychometric evaluation of the Arabic language person-centred climate questionnaire-staff version.

PubMed

Aljuaid, Mohammed; Elmontsri, Mustafa; Edvardsson, David; Rawaf, Salman; Majeed, Azeem

2018-05-01

To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Arabic language person-centred climate questionnaire-staff version. There have been increasing calls for a person-centred rather than a disease-centred approach to health care. A limited number of tools measure the extent to which care is delivered in a person-centred manner, and none of these tools have been validated for us in Arab settings. The validated form of the person-centred climate questionnaire-staff version was translated into Arabic and distributed to 152 health care staff in teaching and non-teaching hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Statistical estimates of validity and reliability were used for psychometric evaluation. Items on the Arabic form of the person-centred climate questionnaire-staff version had high reliability (Cronbach's alpha .98). Cronbach's alpha values for the three sub-scales (safety, everydayness and community), were .96, .97 and .95 respectively. Internal consistency was also high and measures of validity were very good. Arabic form of the person-centred climate questionnaire-staff version provides a valid and reliable way to measure the degree of perceived person-centredness. The tool can be used for comparing levels of person-centredness between wards, units, and public and private hospitals. The tool can also be used to measure the extent of person-centredness in health care settings in other Arab countries. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Health facilities safety in natural disasters: experiences and challenges from South East Europe.

PubMed

Radovic, Vesela; Vitale, Ksenija; Tchounwou, Paul B

2012-05-01

The United Nations named 2010 as a year of natural disasters, and launched a worldwide campaign to improve the safety of schools and hospitals from natural disasters. In the region of South East Europe, Croatia and Serbia have suffered the greatest impacts of natural disasters on their communities and health facilities. In this paper the disaster management approaches of the two countries are compared, with a special emphasis on the existing technological and legislative systems for safety and protection of health facilities and people. Strategic measures that should be taken in future to provide better safety for health facilities and populations, based on the best practices and positive experiences in other countries are recommended. Due to the expected consequences of global climate change in the region and the increased different environmental risks both countries need to refine their disaster preparedness strategies. Also, in the South East Europe, the effects of a natural disaster are amplified in the health sector due to its critical medical infrastructure. Therefore, the principles of environmental security should be implemented in public health policies in the described region, along with principles of disaster management through regional collaborations.

Psychosocial safety climate, emotional demands, burnout, and depression: a longitudinal multilevel study in the Malaysian private sector.

PubMed

Idris, Mohd Awang; Dollard, Maureen F; Yulita

2014-07-01

This multilevel longitudinal study investigates a newly identified climate construct, psychosocial safety climate (PSC), as a precursor to job characteristics (e.g., emotional demands), and psychological outcomes (i.e., emotional exhaustion and depression). We argued that PSC, as an organizational climate construct, has cross-level effects on individually perceived job design and psychological outcomes. We hypothesized a mediation process between PSC and emotional exhaustion particularly through emotional demands. In sequence, we predicted that emotional exhaustion would predict depression. At Time 1, data were collected from employees in 36 Malaysian private sector organizations (80% responses rate), n = 253 (56%), and at Time 2 from 27 organizations (60%) and n = 117 (46%). Using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), we found that there were cross-level effects of PSC Time 1 on emotional demands Time 2 and emotional exhaustion Time 2, but not on depression Time 2, across a 3-month time lag. We found evidence for a lagged mediated effect; emotional demands mediated the relationship between PSC and emotional exhaustion. Emotional exhaustion did not predict depression. Finally, our results suggest that PSC is an important organizational climate construct, and acts to reduce employee psychological problems in the workplace, via working conditions.

Determinants of safety outcomes and performance: A systematic literature review of research in four high-risk industries.

PubMed

Cornelissen, Pieter A; Van Hoof, Joris J; De Jong, Menno D T

2017-09-01

In spite of increasing governmental and organizational efforts, organizations still struggle to improve the safety of their employees as evidenced by the yearly 2.3 million work-related deaths worldwide. Occupational safety research is scattered and inaccessible, especially for practitioners. Through systematically reviewing the safety literature, this study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of behavioral and circumstantial factors that endanger or support employee safety. A broad search on occupational safety literature using four online bibliographical databases yielded 27.527 articles. Through a systematic reviewing process 176 online articles were identified that met the inclusion criteria (e.g., original peer-reviewed research; conducted in selected high-risk industries; published between 1980-2016). Variables and the nature of their interrelationships (i.e., positive, negative, or nonsignificant) were extracted, and then grouped and classified through a process of bottom-up coding. The results indicate that safety outcomes and performance prevail as dependent research areas, dependent on variables related to management & colleagues, work(place) characteristics & circumstances, employee demographics, climate & culture, and external factors. Consensus was found for five variables related to safety outcomes and seven variables related to performance, while there is debate about 31 other relationships. Last, 21 variables related to safety outcomes and performance appear understudied. The majority of safety research has focused on addressing negative safety outcomes and performance through variables related to others within the organization, the work(place) itself, employee demographics, and-to a lesser extent-climate & culture and external factors. This systematic literature review provides both scientists and safety practitioners an overview of the (under)studied behavioral and circumstantial factors related to occupational safety behavior. Scientists could use this overview to study gaps, and validate or falsify relationships. Safety practitioners could use the insights to evaluate organizational safety policies, and to further development of safety interventions. Copyright © 2017 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Emergency Preparedness Safety Climate and Other Factors Associated With Mental Health Outcomes Among World Trade Center Disaster Evacuees.

PubMed

Sherman, Martin F; Gershon, Robyn R; Riley, Halley E M; Zhi, Qi; Magda, Lori A; Peyrot, Mark

2017-06-01

We examined psychological outcomes in a sample of participants who evacuated from the World Trade Center towers on September 11, 2011. This study aimed to identify risk factors for psychological injury that might be amenable to change, thereby reducing adverse impacts associated with emergency high-rise evacuation. We used data from a cross-sectional survey conducted 2 years after the attacks to classify 789 evacuees into 3 self-reported psychological outcome categories: long-term psychological disorder diagnosed by a physician, short-term psychological disorder and/or memory problems, and no known psychological disorder. After nonmodifiable risk factors were controlled for, diagnosed psychological disorder was more likely for evacuees who reported lower "emergency preparedness safety climate" scores, more evacuation challenges (during exit from the towers), and evacuation-related physical injuries. Other variables associated with increased risk of psychological disorder outcome included gender (female), lower levels of education, preexisting physical disability, preexisting psychological disorder, greater distance to final exit, and more information sources during egress. Improving the "emergency preparedness safety climate" of high-rise business occupancies and reducing the number of egress challenges are potential strategies for reducing the risk of adverse psychological outcomes of high-rise evacuations. Focused safety training for individuals with physical disabilities is also warranted. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2017;11:326-336).

Patient Safety Climate: A Study of Southern California Healthcare Organizations.

PubMed

Avramchuk, Andre S; McGuire, Stephen J J

2018-01-01

Human error remains the most important factor in unnecessary deaths and suffering in U.S. hospitals. Human error results from healthcare providers' attitudes and behaviors toward patients in different settings. Therefore, taking periodic snapshots of the attitudes and behaviors prevalent in an organization and manifested in its patient safety climate (PSC) is essential.We developed and tested a short survey instrument intended as an organization-level measure of PSC with good psychometric properties that can be used in hospitals, clinics, or other healthcare provider settings. Analysis of data from 61 Southern California healthcare organizations resulted in a PSC model with four distinct, reliable factors: (1) Assistance From Others and the Organization, (2) Leadership Messages of Support in Policy and Behavior, (3) Resources and Work Environment, and (4) Error Reporting Behavior. A PSC score, ranging from 0 to 100, was generated for each organization.For a subsample of hospitals in our study, preliminary results indicate a predictive quality of the model. The higher the PSC score, the lower the number of violations detected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in complaint inspections, and the fewer the safety problems reported by The Leapfrog Group.Given the association between PSC and health outcomes, we urge healthcare leaders to use various means, such as our survey, to monitor the degree to which their organizations maintain a climate that fosters patient safety and use such data to pinpoint areas for improvement.

A meta-analysis of personality and workplace safety: addressing unanswered questions.

PubMed

Beus, Jeremy M; Dhanani, Lindsay Y; McCord, Mallory A

2015-03-01

[Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported in Vol 100(2) of Journal of Applied Psychology (see record 2015-08139-001). Table 3 contained formatting errors. Minus signs used to indicate negative statistical estimates within the table were inadvertently changed to m-dashes. All versions of this article have been corrected.] The purpose of this meta-analysis was to address unanswered questions regarding the associations between personality and workplace safety by (a) clarifying the magnitude and meaning of these associations with both broad and facet-level personality traits, (b) delineating how personality is associated with workplace safety, and (c) testing the relative importance of personality in comparison to perceptions of the social context of safety (i.e., safety climate) in predicting safety-related behavior. Our results revealed that whereas agreeableness and conscientiousness were negatively associated with unsafe behaviors, extraversion and neuroticism were positively associated with them. Of these traits, agreeableness accounted for the largest proportion of explained variance in safety-related behavior and openness to experience was unrelated. At the facet level, sensation seeking, altruism, anger, and impulsiveness were all meaningfully associated with safety-related behavior, though sensation seeking was the only facet that demonstrated a stronger relationship than its parent trait (i.e., extraversion). In addition, meta-analytic path modeling supported the theoretical expectation that personality's associations with accidents are mediated by safety-related behavior. Finally, although safety climate perceptions accounted for the majority of explained variance in safety-related behavior, personality traits (i.e., agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism) still accounted for a unique and substantive proportion of the explained variance. Taken together, these results substantiate the value of considering personality traits as key correlates of workplace safety. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

Selection of climate change scenario data for impact modelling.

PubMed

Sloth Madsen, M; Maule, C Fox; MacKellar, N; Olesen, J E; Christensen, J Hesselbjerg

2012-01-01

Impact models investigating climate change effects on food safety often need detailed climate data. The aim of this study was to select climate change projection data for selected crop phenology and mycotoxin impact models. Using the ENSEMBLES database of climate model output, this study illustrates how the projected climate change signal of important variables as temperature, precipitation and relative humidity depends on the choice of the climate model. Using climate change projections from at least two different climate models is recommended to account for model uncertainty. To make the climate projections suitable for impact analysis at the local scale a weather generator approach was adopted. As the weather generator did not treat all the necessary variables, an ad-hoc statistical method was developed to synthesise realistic values of missing variables. The method is presented in this paper, applied to relative humidity, but it could be adopted to other variables if needed.

LGBTQ-Inclusive Curricula: Why Supportive Curricula Matter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snapp, Shannon D.; McGuire, Jenifer K.; Sinclair, Katarina O.; Gabrion, Karlee; Russell, Stephen T.

2015-01-01

There is growing attention to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) issues in schools, including efforts to address such issues through the curriculum. This study examines whether students' perceptions of personal safety and school climate safety are stronger when curricula that include LGBTQ people are present and…

Urban School Challenges: Implementation and Sustainability of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rusk, Christina N.

2016-01-01

Educators are under increasing pressure to improve the climate and safety in urban schools. Unfortunately, schools have addressed school safety concerns by increasing exclusionary measures such as suspensions and expulsions. Knowing that exclusionary measures can have detrimental effects, state legislatures have called for more proactive…

Managing Bullying in Politically Charged Climates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trump, Kenneth S.

2011-01-01

Educators, school safety experts, and anti-bullying advocates typically agree that bullying is a serious issue. They also agree that anti-bullying strategies should be an integral component of a school's safety plan. However, differences remain in how bullying should be addressed. Those differences have become magnified as bullying has become an…

Coupling between air travel and climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karnauskas, Kristopher B.; Donnelly, Jeffrey P.; Barkley, Hannah C.; Martin, Jonathan E.

2015-12-01

The airline industry closely monitors the midlatitude jet stream for short-term planning of flight paths and arrival times. In addition to passenger safety and on-time metrics, this is due to the acute sensitivity of airline profits to fuel cost. US carriers spent US$47 billion on jet fuel in 2011, compared with a total industry operating revenue of US$192 billion. Beyond the timescale of synoptic weather, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Arctic Oscillation (AO) and other modes of variability modulate the strength and position of the Aleutian low and Pacific high on interannual timescales, which influence the tendency of the exit region of the midlatitude Pacific jet stream to extend, retract and meander poleward and equatorward. The impact of global aviation on climate change has been studied for decades owing to the radiative forcing of emitted greenhouse gases, contrails and other effects. The impact of climate variability on air travel, however, has only recently come into focus, primarily in terms of turbulence. Shifting attention to flight durations, here we show that 88% of the interannual variance in domestic flight times between Hawaii and the continental US is explained by a linear combination of ENSO and the AO. Further, we extend our analysis to CMIP5 model projections to explore potential feedbacks between anthropogenic climate change and air travel.

Safety culture and the 5 steps to safer surgery: an intervention study.

PubMed

Hill, M R; Roberts, M J; Alderson, M L; Gale, T C E

2015-06-01

Improvements in safety culture have been postulated as one of the mechanisms underlying the association between the introduction of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist with perioperative briefings and debriefings, and enhanced patient outcomes. The 5 Steps to Safer Surgery (5SSS) incorporates pre-list briefings, the three steps of the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC) and post-list debriefings in one framework. We aimed to identify any changes in safety culture associated with the introduction of the 5SSS in orthopaedic operating theatres. We assessed the safety culture in the elective orthopaedic theatres of a large UK teaching hospital before and after introduction of the 5SSS using a modified version of the Safety Attitude Questionnaire - Operating Room (SAQ-OR). Primary outcome measures were pre-post intervention changes in the six safety culture domains of the SAQ-OR. We also analysed changes in responses to two items regarding perioperative briefings. The SAQ-OR survey response rate was 80% (60/75) at baseline and 74% (53/72) one yr later. There were significant improvements in both the reported frequency (P<0.001) and perceived importance (P=0.018) of briefings, and in five of the six safety culture domain scores (Working Conditions, Perceptions of Management, Job Satisfaction, Safety Climate and Teamwork Climate) of the SAQ-OR (P<0.001 in all cases). Scores in the sixth domain (Stress Recognition) decreased significantly (P=0.028). Implementation of the 5SSS was associated with a significant improvement in the safety culture of elective orthopaedic operating theatres. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Journal of Anaesthesia. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Investigating ethnic minorities' perceptions of safety climate in the construction industry.

PubMed

Chan, Albert P C; Wong, Francis K W; Hon, Carol K H; Lyu, Sainan; Javed, Arshad Ali

2017-12-01

An increasing number of ethnic minorities (EMs) have been employed in the construction industry to alleviate severe labor shortages in many countries. Unfortunately, statistics show that EMs have higher fatal and non-fatal occupational injury rates than their local counterparts. However, EMs are often underrepresented in safety climate (SC) research as they are difficult to reach and gauge their perception. A positive relationship has been widely found between SC and safety performance. Understanding the safety perceptions of EMs helps to reduce injuries and improve their safety performance. Based on a sample of 320 EMs from 20 companies in the construction industry, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to identify the SC factors of EMs, and validate the extracted factors, respectively. Multivariate analysis of variance was undertaken to examine mean differences in perceptions of SC by personal characteristics. Three SC factors for EMs encapsulating 16 variables were identified through EFA. The hypothesized CFA model for a three-factor structure derived from EFA showed a satisfactory goodness-of-fit, composite reliability, and construct validity. Three SC factors were identified, namely: (a) safety management commitment, safety resources, and safety communication; (b) employee's involvement and workmate's influence; and (c) perception of safety rules, procedures and risks. The perceptions of SC differed significantly by nationality, marital status, the number of family members supported, and drinking habit. This study reveals the perception of EMs toward SC. The findings highlight the areas for safety improvement and provide leading indicators for safety performance of EMs. The findings are also enlightening for countries with a number of EMs, such as the United Sates, the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, and the Middle East. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Nursing perceptions of patient safety climate in the Gaza Strip, Palestine.

PubMed

Elsous, A; Akbari Sari, A; AlJeesh, Y; Radwan, M

2017-09-01

This study was undertaken to assess the perception of nurses about patient safety culture and to test whether it is significantly affected by the nurses' position, age, experience and working hours. Patient safety has sparked the interest of healthcare mangers, yet there is limited knowledge about the current patient safety culture among nurses in the Gaza Strip. This was a descriptive cross-sectional study, administering the Arabic Safety Attitude Questionnaire (Short Form 2006) to 210 nurses in four public general hospitals. Job Satisfaction was the most highly perceived factor affecting patient safety, followed by Perception of Management. Safety culture varied across nursing position, age, work experience and working hours. Nurse Managers had more positive attitudes towards patients than frontline clinicians did. The more experience nurses had, the better their attitudes towards patient safety. Nurses who worked the minimum weekly required hours and who were 35 years and older had better attitudes towards all patient safety dimensions except for Stress Recognition. Nurses with a positive attitude had better collaboration with healthcare professionals than those without a positive attitude. Generalization is limited, as nurses who worked in private and specialized hospitals were excluded. Evaluation of the safety culture is the essential starting point to identify hindrances or drivers for safe patient care. Job Satisfaction, Perception of Management and Teamwork necessitate reinforcement, while Working Conditions, Stress Recognition and Safety Climate require improvement. Ensuring job satisfaction through adequate staffing levels, providing incentives and maintaining a collegial environment require both strategic planning and institutional policies at the higher administrative level. Creation of a non-punitive and learning environment, promoting open communication and fostering continuous education should be fundamental aspects of hospital management. A policy of mixing experienced nurses with inexperienced nurses should be considered. © 2017 International Council of Nurses.

The Relationship of the Principal's Soft Skills to School Climate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malone, Mark E.

2013-01-01

School Climate has been identified by a large body of literature as having a direct relationship on student achievement (Johnson, & Stevens, 2000; Kezar & Eckel, 2007; West, 1985), and) and numerous other components used to determine the success and safety of both students and teachers in schools (Finnan, Schnepel, & Anderson, 2003;…

Substance Use, Safety and School Climate in Idaho, 1998.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coe, Michael T.

This report details the results of the 1998 Idaho Substance Use and School Climate Survey, conducted by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory for the Idaho Department of Education. Sixth, eighth, tenth, and twelfth grade students were asked about the use of alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs, as well as about their perceptions of the…

Resilience of Alaska's boreal forest to climate change

Treesearch

F.S. Chapin; A.D. McGuire; R.W. Ruess; T.N. Hollingsworth; M.C. Mack; J.F. Johnstone; E.S. Kasischke; E.S. Euskirchen; J.B. Jones; M.T. Jorgenson; K. Kielland; G.P. Kofinas; M.R. Turetsky; J. Yarie; A.H. Lloyd; D.L. Taylor

2010-01-01

This paper assesses the resilience of Alaska's boreal forest system to rapid climatic change. Recent warming is associated with reduced growth of dominant tree species, plant disease and insect outbreaks, warming and thawing of permafrost, drying of lakes, increased wildfire extent, increased postfire recruitment of deciduous trees, and reduced safety of hunters...

Improving School Climate to Reduce Bullying

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, David

2012-01-01

Bullying harms kids in nearly every way imaginable. It disrupts their learning; it causes them to suffer anxiety and depression; and it undermines their feelings of safety and connection to school. New understandings of bullying are based on relationships and connect directly to the growing appreciation of the role of the social climate within…

Research for assessment, not deployment, of Climate Engineering: The German Research Foundation's Priority Program SPP 1689

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oschlies, Andreas; Klepper, Gernot

2017-01-01

The historical developments are reviewed that have led from a bottom-up responsibility initiative of concerned scientists to the emergence of a nationwide interdisciplinary Priority Program on the assessment of Climate Engineering (CE) funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). Given the perceived lack of comprehensive and comparative appraisals of different CE methods, the Priority Program was designed to encompass both solar radiation management (SRM) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) ideas and to cover the atmospheric, terrestrial, and oceanic realm. First, key findings obtained by the ongoing Priority Program are summarized and reveal that, compared to earlier assessments such as the 2009 Royal Society report, more detailed investigations tend to indicate less efficiency, lower effectiveness, and often lower safety. Emerging research trends are discussed in the context of the recent Paris agreement to limit global warming to less than two degrees and the associated increasing reliance on negative emission technologies. Our results show then when deployed at scales large enough to have a significant impact on atmospheric CO2, even CDR methods such as afforestation—often perceived as "benign"—can have substantial side effects and may raise severe ethical, legal, and governance issues. We suppose that before being deployed at climatically relevant scales, any negative emission or CE method will require careful analysis of efficiency, effectiveness, and undesired side effects.

Should Psychosocial Safety Climate Theory Be Extended to Include Climate Strength?

PubMed

Afsharian, Ali; Zadow, Amy; Dollard, Maureen F; Dormann, Christian; Ziaian, Tahereh

2017-08-31

Psychosocial safety climate (PSC; climate for psychological health) is an organizational antecedent to work conditions articulated in the job demands-resources model. We responded to calls for broader consideration of organizational climate in terms of both climate level and strength. We tested PSC level and strength as main and interactive predictors of work conditions, psychological health, and engagement. Using multilevel analysis and cross-sectional data, the effects of unit-level PSC constructs were investigated in 21 hospital work units (n = 249 employees) in Australia. The correlation between PSC levels (measured at the unit mean) and PSC strength (measured as unit -1 × SD) was moderate and positive, suggesting that ceiling effects of PSC scores were not problematic. PSC level was a better predictor than PSC strength or their interactions for job demands (psychological and emotional demands), job resources (e.g., skill discretion and organizational support), and health (emotional exhaustion). For engagement, the interaction was significant-improving engagement, therefore, benefits from high levels of PSC and PSC strength within the work units. So, in answer to the research question regarding PSC theory extension, "it depends on the outcome." Research limitations are acknowledged, and the potential of the PSC model to guide the reduction of workplace psychosocial risk factors and the negative consequences is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

The reasons for Chinese nursing staff to report adverse events: a questionnaire survey.

PubMed

Hong, Su; Li, QiuJie

2017-04-01

To investigate the impact of nurses' perception of patient safety culture and adverse event reporting, and demographic factors on adverse event reporting in Chinese hospitals. Accurate and timely adverse event reporting is integral in promoting patient safety and professional learning around the incident. In a cross-sectional survey, a sample of 919 nurses completed a structured questionnaire composed of two validated instruments measuring nurses' perception of patient safety culture and adverse event reporting. Associations between the variables were examined using multiple linear regression analysis. The positive response rates of five dimensions of the Patient Safety Culture Assessment Scale varied from 47.55% to 80.62%. The accuracy rate of Adverse Event Reporting Perception Scale was 63.16%. Five hundred and thirty-one (58.03%) nurses did not report adverse event in past 12 months. Six variables were found to be associated with nurses' adverse event reporting: total work experience (P = 0.003), overall patient safety culture score (P < 0.001), safety climate (P < 0.001), teamwork climate (P < 0.001), overall the adverse event reporting perception scale score (P = 0.003) and importance or reporting (P = 0.002). The results confirmed that improvements in the patient safety culture and nurses' perception of adverse event reporting were related to an increase in voluntary adverse event reporting. The knowledge of adverse event reporting should be integrated into the patient safety curriculum. Interventions that target a specific domain are necessary to improve the safety culture. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A cross-sectional study to assess the patient safety culture in the Palestinian hospitals: a baseline assessment for quality improvement.

PubMed

Elsous, Aymen; Akbari Sari, Ali; Rashidian, Arash; Aljeesh, Yousef; Radwan, Mahmoud; AbuZaydeh, Hatem

2016-12-01

To measure and establish a baseline assessment of the patient safety culture in the Palestinian hospitals. A cross-sectional descriptive study using the Arabic version of the Safety Attitude Questionnaire (Short Form 2006). A total of 339 nurses and physicians returned the questionnaire out of 370 achieving a response rate of 91.6%. Four public general hospitals in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. Nurses and physicians were randomly selected using a proportionate random sampling. Data analysis performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software version 20, and p value less than 0.05 was statistically significant. Current status of patient safety culture among healthcare providers and percentage of positive attitudes. Male to female ratio was 2.16:1, and mean age was 36.5 ± 9.4 years. The mean score of Arabic Safety Attitude Questionnaire across the six dimensions on 100-point scale ranged between 68.5 for Job Satisfaction and 48.5 for Working Condition. The percentage of respondents holding a positive attitude was 34.5% for Teamwork Climate, 28.4% for Safety Climate, 40.7% for Stress Recognition, 48.8% for Job Satisfaction, 11.3% for Working Conditions and 42.8% for Perception of Management. Healthcare workers holding positive attitudes had better collaboration with co-workers than those without positive attitudes. Findings are useful to formulate a policy on patient safety culture and targeted a specific safety culture dimension to improve the safety of patients and improve the clinical outcomes within healthcare organisations.

Context Matters for Social-Emotional Learning: Examining Variation in Program Impact by Dimensions of School Climate.

PubMed

McCormick, Meghan P; Cappella, Elise; O'Connor, Erin E; McClowry, Sandee G

2015-09-01

This paper examines whether three dimensions of school climate-leadership, accountability, and safety/respect-moderated the impacts of the INSIGHTS program on students' social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes. Twenty-two urban schools and N = 435 low-income racial/ethnic minority students were enrolled in the study and received intervention services across the course of 2 years, in both kindergarten and first grade. Intervention effects on math and reading achievement were larger for students enrolled in schools with lower overall levels of leadership, accountability, and safety/respect at baseline. Program impacts on disruptive behaviors were greater in schools with lower levels of accountability at baseline; impacts on sustained attention were greater in schools with lower levels of safety/respect at baseline. Implications for Social-Emotional Learning program implementation, replication, and scale-up are discussed.

Authoritative school climate, aggression toward teachers, and teacher distress in middle school.

PubMed

Berg, Juliette K; Cornell, Dewey

2016-03-01

Aggression toward teachers is linked to burnout and disengagement from teaching, but a positive school climate may reduce aggression and associated teacher distress. Using authoritative school climate theory, the study examined whether schools with high disciplinary structure and student support were associated with less aggression and less distress. The sample of 9,134 teachers in 389 middle schools came from the Virginia Secondary School Climate Survey, a statewide survey administered to all public schools with 7th and 8th grade enrollment. The majority of teachers (75%) were female. More than half (53%) reported that they had more than 10 years of teaching experience; 23% reported 6 to 10 years; 24% reported 1 to 5 years. Students reported on the degree to which their schools were structured and supportive. Teachers reported on their experiences of aggression by students, their level of distress, and their feelings of safety. Staff-related infractions computed from Department of Education records were also used. Multilevel modeling revealed that teachers in authoritative schools experienced less aggression and felt safer and less distressed. Lower aggression by students mediated the association between more authoritative schools and lower distress such that more structured and supportive schools had greater teacher safety and, in turn, less distress. The findings support the idea that more structured and supportive schools relate to greater safety for teachers and, in turn, less distress. Research limitations and implications for practice are discussed. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Positive Effects of an Anti-Aggression and De-Escalation Training on Ward Atmosphere and Subjective Safety May Depend on Previous Training Experience.

PubMed

Fröhlich, Daniela; Rabenschlag, Franziska; Schoppmann, Susanne; Borgwardt, Stefan; Lang, Undine E; Huber, Christian G

2018-01-01

Anti-aggression and de-escalation (ADE) trainings of health-care professionals working on psychiatric inpatient wards have been shown to increase staff knowledge and confidence, which could be connected with higher subjective safety. Additionally, a potential reduction of aggressive incidents could improve ward atmosphere. Thus, the current study aimed to investigate the effects of ADE training on ward atmosphere and subjective safety. In 2015, an ADE training was established at the Psychiatric University Clinics (UPK), University of Basel. Nursing staff from 22 wards received theoretical and practical training over the course of 5 days. Ward atmosphere and subjective safety were assessed using the Essen Climate Evaluation Schema (EssenCES). A total of 46 people had been assessed in 2012 before training implementation (baseline), and 45 persons in 2016 after implementation. In the 2016 group, 23 people had previously participated in an ADE training, and 22 were first-time participants. Patients' coherence ( p  = 0.004), subjective safety ( p  = 0.004), and ward atmosphere ( p  = 0.001) were rated significantly higher by first-time ADE training participants compared to baseline, and patients' coherence ( p  = 0.029) and ward atmosphere ( p  = 0.011) were rated significantly higher by first-time ADE training participants than by nurses with prior ADE training. There were no significant differences regarding any EssenCES ratings by nurses with prior ADE training compared to baseline. ADE training was exclusively connected with higher ratings on most EssenCES scales for first-time participants. This indicates that the positive effects of ADE training may depend on previous training experience.

Southern Great Plains Safety Orientation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schatz, John

2014-05-01

Welcome to the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility (ARM) Southern Great Plains (SGP) site. This U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) site is managed by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). It is very important that all visitors comply with all DOE and ANL safety requirements, as well as those of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the National Fire Protection Association, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and with other requirements as applicable.

Human factors experts beginning to focus on organizational factors in safety.

PubMed

Westrum, R

1996-10-01

The role of organizational culture in aviation safety is explored. Information flow is used to demonstrate three ranges of climate within an organization. Organizations may be pathological in which information is hidden, bureaucratic in which information is ignored, or generative in which information is actively sought. The effects of organizational change on personnel are explored with emphasis on mergers between air carriers. The relationship between safety measures and economic pressures is discussed.

Decision- rather than scenario-centred downscaling: Towards smarter use of climate model outputs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilby, Robert L.

2013-04-01

Climate model output has been used for hydrological impact assessments for at least 25 years. Scenario-led methods raise awareness about risks posed by climate variability and change to the security of supplies, performance of water infrastructure, and health of freshwater ecosystems. However, it is less clear how these analyses translate into actionable information for adaptation. One reason is that scenario-led methods typically yield very large uncertainty bounds in projected impacts at regional and river catchment scales. Consequently, there is growing interest in vulnerability-based frameworks and strategies for employing climate model output in decision-making contexts. This talk begins by summarising contrasting perspectives on climate models and principles for testing their utility for water sector applications. Using selected examples it is then shown how water resource systems may be adapted with varying levels of reliance on climate model information. These approaches include the conventional scenario-led risk assessment, scenario-neutral strategies, safety margins and sensitivity testing, and adaptive management of water systems. The strengths and weaknesses of each approach are outlined and linked to selected water management activities. These cases show that much progress can be made in managing water systems without dependence on climate models. Low-regret measures such as improved forecasting, better inter-agency co-operation, and contingency planning, yield benefits regardless of the climate outlook. Nonetheless, climate model scenarios are useful for evaluating adaptation portfolios, identifying system thresholds and fixing weak links, exploring the timing of investments, improving operating rules, or developing smarter licensing regimes. The most problematic application remains the climate change safety margin because of the very low confidence in extreme precipitation and river flows generated by climate models. In such cases, it is necessary to understand the trade-offs that exist between the additional costs of a scheme and the level of risk that is accommodated.

Effect of extreme sea surface temperature events on the demography of an age-structured albatross population.

PubMed

Pardo, Deborah; Jenouvrier, Stéphanie; Weimerskirch, Henri; Barbraud, Christophe

2017-06-19

Climate changes include concurrent changes in environmental mean, variance and extremes, and it is challenging to understand their respective impact on wild populations, especially when contrasted age-dependent responses to climate occur. We assessed how changes in mean and standard deviation of sea surface temperature (SST), frequency and magnitude of warm SST extreme climatic events (ECE) influenced the stochastic population growth rate log( λ s ) and age structure of a black-browed albatross population. For changes in SST around historical levels observed since 1982, changes in standard deviation had a larger (threefold) and negative impact on log( λ s ) compared to changes in mean. By contrast, the mean had a positive impact on log( λ s ). The historical SST mean was lower than the optimal SST value for which log( λ s ) was maximized. Thus, a larger environmental mean increased the occurrence of SST close to this optimum that buffered the negative effect of ECE. This 'climate safety margin' (i.e. difference between optimal and historical climatic conditions) and the specific shape of the population growth rate response to climate for a species determine how ECE affect the population. For a wider range in SST, both the mean and standard deviation had negative impact on log( λ s ), with changes in the mean having a greater effect than the standard deviation. Furthermore, around SST historical levels increases in either mean or standard deviation of the SST distribution led to a younger population, with potentially important conservation implications for black-browed albatrosses.This article is part of the themed issue 'Behavioural, ecological and evolutionary responses to extreme climatic events'. © 2017 The Author(s).

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Safety Culture Varies Widely

PubMed Central

Profit, Jochen; Etchegaray, Jason; Petersen, Laura A; Sexton, J Bryan; Hysong, Sylvia J; Mei, Minghua; Thomas, Eric J

2013-01-01

background Variation in health care delivery and outcomes in NICUs may be partly explained by differences in safety culture. objective To describe NICU caregiver assessments of safety culture, explore the variability within and between NICUs on safety culture domains, and test for association with caregiver characteristics. methods We surveyed NICU caregivers in a convenience sample of 12 hospitals from a single health care system, using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ). The six scales of the SAQ include teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, stress recognition, perception of management, and working conditions. For each NICU we calculated scale means, standard deviations and percent positives (percent agreement). results We found substantial variation in safety culture domains among participating NICUs. A composite mean score across the six safety culture domains ranged from 56.3 to 77.8 on a 100-point scale and NICUs in the top four NICUs were significantly different from the bottom four (p < .001). Across the six domains, respondent assessments varied widely, but were least positive on perceptions of management (3–80% positive; mean 33.3%) and stress recognition (18–61% positive; mean 41.3%). Comparisons of SAQ scale scores between NICUs and a previously published cohort of adult ICUs generally revealed higher scores for NICUs. Physicians composite scores were 8.2 (p = .04) and 9.5 (p =.02) points higher than nurses and ancillary personnel. conclusion Significant variation and scope for improvement in safety culture exists among this sample of NICUs. The NICU variation was similar to variation in adult ICUs, but NICU scores were generally higher than adult ICU scores. Future studies should validate whether safety culture as measured with the SAQ correlates with clinical and operational outcomes in the NICU setting. PMID:21930691

The use of commercial advertising on large scale electronic billboards for highways and their relation to driver safety and driver distraction, literature review.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-07-01

The potential for driver distraction on highways is a major safety concern for state : departments of transportation (DOTs). In the current technological climate, drivers have : the potential to be distracted by cell phones, mp3 players and other med...

28 CFR 97.20 - Standards to ensure the safety of violent prisoners during transport.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... applicable State and federal laws that govern the safety of violent prisoners during transport. In addition... systems that are capable of immediately notifying State and local law enforcement officials in the event... vehicle, climate-appropriate uniforms, and prohibitions on the use of tobacco, in any form, in the...

28 CFR 97.20 - Standards to ensure the safety of violent prisoners during transport.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... applicable State and federal laws that govern the safety of violent prisoners during transport. In addition... systems that are capable of immediately notifying State and local law enforcement officials in the event... vehicle, climate-appropriate uniforms, and prohibitions on the use of tobacco, in any form, in the...

28 CFR 97.20 - Standards to ensure the safety of violent prisoners during transport.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... applicable State and federal laws that govern the safety of violent prisoners during transport. In addition... systems that are capable of immediately notifying State and local law enforcement officials in the event... vehicle, climate-appropriate uniforms, and prohibitions on the use of tobacco, in any form, in the...

28 CFR 97.20 - Standards to ensure the safety of violent prisoners during transport.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... applicable State and federal laws that govern the safety of violent prisoners during transport. In addition... systems that are capable of immediately notifying State and local law enforcement officials in the event... vehicle, climate-appropriate uniforms, and prohibitions on the use of tobacco, in any form, in the...

Contributions of participatory ergonomics to the improvement of safety culture in an industrial context.

PubMed

Lallemand, Carine

2012-01-01

This paper presents the results of an ergonomic intervention conducted within a blast furnace plant. As part of its risk prevention program, the company decided to set up an action plan, in a participatory manner, by setting up working groups to solve health & safety issues. This field mission involved 230 employees, 80 of whom participated actively by being incorporated into working groups. After four months of intervention, a questionnaire survey has been conducted among employees to study the effects of participation on the safety climate. The results seem promising and show that the benefits of participation are numerous: a more positive safety climate associated to safer attitudes and behaviors. However, rather than just participation, it seems to be the employee involvement in the working groups and the satisfaction they derive from their participation that guarantee these positive results. Hence, participatory ergonomics seems to be an effective way to decrease the number of unsafe behaviors at work, provided that the type of participation has been previously well defined and organized according to the specific context of each organization.

Intervention effects on safety compliance and citizenship behaviors: Evidence from the Work, Family, and Health Study.

PubMed

Hammer, Leslie B; Johnson, Ryan C; Crain, Tori L; Bodner, Todd; Kossek, Ellen Ernst; Davis, Kelly D; Kelly, Erin L; Buxton, Orfeu M; Karuntzos, Georgia; Chosewood, L Casey; Berkman, Lisa

2016-02-01

We tested the effects of a work-family intervention on employee reports of safety compliance and organizational citizenship behaviors in 30 health care facilities using a group-randomized trial. Based on conservation of resources theory and the work-home resources model, we hypothesized that implementing a work-family intervention aimed at increasing contextual resources via supervisor support for work and family, and employee control over work time, would lead to improved personal resources and increased employee performance on the job in the form of self-reported safety compliance and organizational citizenship behaviors. Multilevel analyses used survey data from 1,524 employees at baseline and at 6-month and 12-month postintervention follow-ups. Significant intervention effects were observed for safety compliance at the 6-month, and organizational citizenship behaviors at the 12-month, follow-ups. More specifically, results demonstrate that the intervention protected against declines in employee self-reported safety compliance and organizational citizenship behaviors compared with employees in the control facilities. The hypothesized mediators of perceptions of family-supportive supervisor behaviors, control over work time, and work-family conflict (work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict) were not significantly improved by the intervention. However, baseline perceptions of family-supportive supervisor behaviors, control over work time, and work-family climate were significant moderators of the intervention effect on the self-reported safety compliance and organizational citizenship behavior outcomes. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Elder Abuse in Nursing Homes: Do Special Care Units Make a Difference? A Secondary Data Analysis of the Swiss Nursing Homes Human Resources Project.

PubMed

Blumenfeld Arens, Olivia; Fierz, Katharina; Zúñiga, Franziska

2017-01-01

In special care units (SCUs) for residents with advanced dementia, both personnel and organizations are adapted to the needs of residents. However, whether these adaptations have a preventive effect on elder abuse has not yet been explored. To describe the prevalence of observed emotional abuse, neglect, and physical abuse in Swiss nursing homes, to compare SCUs with non-SCUs concerning the frequency of observed emotional abuse, neglect, and physical abuse, and to explore how resident-related characteristics, staff outcomes/characteristics, and organizational/environmental factors relate to observed elder abuse. This is a secondary data analysis of the Swiss Nursing Homes Human Resources Project (SHURP), a cross-sectional multicenter study. Data were collected from 2012 to 2013 and are based on observed rather than perpetrated elder abuse. We performed multilevel mixed-effects logistic regressions taking into account the hierarchical structure of the data with personnel nested within units and facilities. Of 4,599 care workers in 400 units and 156 facilities, 50.8% observed emotional abuse, 23.7% neglect, and 1.4% physical abuse. There was no significant difference between SCUs and non-SCUs regarding observed emotional abuse and neglect. Higher scores for 'workload' and sexual aggression towards care workers were associated with higher rates of emotional abuse and neglect. Verbal and physical resident aggression, however, were only associated with higher rates of emotional abuse. Negative associations were found between 'teamwork and resident safety climate' and both forms of abuse. Improving teamwork and the safety climate and reducing work stressors might be promising points of intervention to reduce elder abuse. More specific research about elder abuse in SCUs and the interaction between work climate and elder abuse is required. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Identifying work ability promoting factors for home care aides and assistant nurses

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background In workplace health promotion, all potential resources needs to be taken into consideration, not only factors relating to the absence of injury and the physical health of the workers, but also psychological aspects. A dynamic balance between the resources of the individual employees and the demands of work is an important prerequisite. In the home care services, there is a noticeable trend towards increased psychosocial strain on employees at work. There are a high frequency of work-related musculoskeletal disorders and injuries, and a low prevalence of sustainable work ability. The aim of this research was to identify factors promoting work ability and self-efficacy in care aides and assistant nurses within home care services. Methods This study is based on cross-sectional data collected in a municipality in northern Sweden. Care aides (n = 58) and assistant nurses (n = 79) replied to a self-administered questionnaire (response rate 46%). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed to assess the influence of several independent variables on self-efficacy (model 1) and work ability (model 2) for care aides and assistant nurses separately. Results Perceptions of personal safety, self-efficacy and musculoskeletal wellbeing contributed to work ability for assistant nurses (R2adj of 0.36, p < 0.001), while for care aides, the safety climate, seniority and age contributed to work ability (R2adj of 0.29, p = 0.001). Self-efficacy was associated with the safety climate and the physical demands of the job in both professions (R2adj of 0.24, p = 0.003 for care aides), and also by sex and age for the assistant nurses (R2adj of 0.31, p < 0.001). Conclusions The intermediate factors contributed differently to work ability in the two professions. Self-efficacy, personal safety and musculoskeletal wellbeing were important for the assistant nurses, while the work ability of the care aides was associated with the safety climate, but also with the non-changeable factors age and seniority. All these factors are important to acknowledge in practice and in further research. Proactive workplace interventions need to focus on potentially modifiable factors such as self-efficacy, safety climate, physical job demands and musculoskeletal wellbeing. PMID:22236253

Safety leadership at construction sites: the importance of rule-oriented and participative leadership.

PubMed

Grill, Martin; Pousette, Anders; Nielsen, Kent; Grytnes, Regine; Törner, Marianne

2017-07-01

Objectives The construction industry accounted for >20% of all fatal occupational accidents in Europe in 2014. Leadership is an essential antecedent to occupational safety. The aim of the present study was to assess the influence of transformational, active transactional, rule-oriented, participative, and laissez-faire leadership on safety climate, safety behavior, and accidents in the Swedish and Danish construction industry. Sweden and Denmark are similar countries but have a large difference in occupational accidents rates. Methods A questionnaire study was conducted among a random sample of construction workers in both countries: 811 construction workers from 85 sites responded, resulting in site and individual response rates of 73% and 64%, respectively. Results The results indicated that transformational, active transactional, rule-oriented and participative leadership predict positive safety outcomes, and laissez-faire leadership predict negative safety outcomes. For example, rule-oriented leadership predicts a superior safety climate (β=0.40, P<0.001), enhanced safety behavior (β=0.15, P<0.001), and fewer accidents [odds ratio (OR) 0.78, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.62-0.98]. The effect of rule-oriented leadership on workers' safety behavior was moderated by the level of participative leadership (β=0.10, P<0.001), suggesting that when rules and plans are established in a collaborative manner, workers' motivation to comply with safety regulations and participate in proactive safety activities is elevated. The influence of leadership behaviors on safety outcomes were largely similar in Sweden and Denmark. Rule-oriented and participative leadership were more common in the Swedish than Danish construction industry, which may partly explain the difference in occupational accident rates. Conclusions Applying less laissez-faire leadership and more transformational, active transactional, participative and rule-oriented leadership appears to be an effective way for construction site managers to improve occupational safety in the industry.

LGBT Students Want Educators to Speak up for Them

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Abe Louise

2011-01-01

Changing a school's culture with regard to how it treats lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students can seem impossible, the author says. Educators must take the temperature of a school climate, map a route, establish rules, and hand out safety gear. Mostly, changing that climate will require educators to listen closely to students and hear…

Using Data for School Change: The Discipline Equity Audit and School Climate Survey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gullo, Gina Laura

2018-01-01

Using data effectively is a critical skill for the modern school leaders. This case presents a school district where local interest groups are demanding changes regarding school safety and inclusion. Students have the opportunity to respond to a disciplinary equity audit and school climate survey. While interpreting and using data in a meaningful…

Wind extremes in the North Sea basin under climate change: an ensemble study of 12 CMIP5 GCMs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Winter, R.; Ruessink, G.; Sterl, A.

2012-12-01

Coastal safety may be influenced by climate change, as changes in extreme surge levels and wave extremes may increase the vulnerability of dunes and other coastal defenses. In the North Sea, an area already prone to severe flooding, these high surge levels and waves are generated by severe wind speeds during storm events. As a result of the geometry of the North Sea, not only the maximum wind speed is relevant, but also wind direction. Analyzing changes in a changing climate implies that several uncertainties need to be taken into account. First, there is the uncertainty in climate experiments, which represents the possible development of the emission of greenhouse gases. Second, there is uncertainty between the climate models that are used to analyze the effect of different climate experiments. The third uncertainty is the natural variability of the climate. When this system variability is large, small trends will be difficult to detect. The natural variability results in statistical uncertainty, especially for events with high return values. We addressed the first two types of uncertainties for extreme wind conditions in the North Sea using 12 CMIP5 GCMs. To evaluate the differences between the climate experiments, two climate experiments (rcp4.5 and rcp8.5) from 2050-2100 are compared with historical runs, running from 1950-2000. Rcp4.5 is considered to be a middle climate experiment and rcp8.5 represents high-end climate scenarios. The projections of the 12 GCMs for a given scenario illustrate model uncertainty. We focus on the North Sea basin, because changes in wind conditions could have a large impact on safety of the densely populated North Sea coast, an area that has already a high exposure to flooding. Our results show that, consistent with ERA-Interim results, the annual maximum wind speed in the historical run demonstrates large interannual variability. For the North Sea, the annual maximum wind speed is not projected to change in either rcp4.5 or rcp8.5. In fact, the differences in the 12 GCMs are larger than the difference between the three experiments. Furthermore, our results show that, the variation in direction of annual maximum wind speed is large and this precludes a firm statement on climate-change induced changes in these directions. Nonetheless, most models indicate a decrease in annual maximum wind speed from south-eastern directions and an increase from south-western and western directions. This might be caused by a poleward shift of the storm track. The amount of wind from north-west and north-north-west, wind directions that are responsible for the development of extreme storm surges in the southern part of the North Sea, are not projected to change. However, North Sea coasts that have the longest fetch for western direction, e.g. the German Bight, may encounter more often high storm surge levels and extreme waves when the annual maximum wind will indeed be more often from western direction.

Transformational leadership and group interaction as climate antecedents: a social network analysis.

PubMed

Zohar, Dov; Tenne-Gazit, Orly

2008-07-01

In order to test the social mechanisms through which organizational climate emerges, this article introduces a model that combines transformational leadership and social interaction as antecedents of climate strength (i.e., the degree of within-unit agreement about climate perceptions). Despite their longstanding status as primary variables, both antecedents have received limited empirical research. The sample consisted of 45 platoons of infantry soldiers from 5 different brigades, using safety climate as the exemplar. Results indicate a partially mediated model between transformational leadership and climate strength, with density of group communication network as the mediating variable. In addition, the results showed independent effects for group centralization of the communication and friendship networks, which exerted incremental effects on climate strength over transformational leadership. Whereas centralization of the communication network was found to be negatively related to climate strength, centralization of the friendship network was positively related to it. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Influence of climate on landscape characteristics in safety assessments of repositories for radioactive wastes.

PubMed

Becker, J K; Lindborg, T; Thorne, M C

2014-12-01

In safety assessments of repositories for radioactive wastes, large spatial and temporal scales have to be considered when developing an approach to risk calculations. A wide range of different types of information may be required. Local to the site of interest, temperature and precipitation data may be used to determine the erosional regime (which may also be conditioned by the vegetation characteristics adopted, based both on climatic and other considerations). However, geomorphological changes may be governed by regional rather than local considerations, e.g. alteration of river base levels, river capture and drainage network reorganisation, or the progression of an ice sheet or valley glacier across the site. The regional climate is in turn governed by the global climate. In this work, a commentary is presented on the types of climate models that can be used to develop projections of climate change for use in post-closure radiological impact assessments of geological repositories for radioactive wastes. These models include both Atmosphere-Ocean General Circulation Models and Earth Models of Intermediate Complexity. The relevant outputs available from these models are identified and consideration is given to how these outputs may be used to inform projections of landscape development. Issues of spatial and temporal downscaling of climate model outputs to meet the requirements of local-scale landscape development modelling are also addressed. An example is given of how climate change and landscape development influence the radiological impact of radionuclides potentially released from the deep geological disposal facility for spent nuclear fuel that SKB (the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company) proposes to construct at Forsmark, Sweden. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

How Differences Between Manager and Clinician Perceptions of Safety Culture Impact Hospital Processes of Care.

PubMed

Richter, Jason; Mazurenko, Olena; Kazley, Abby Swanson; Ford, Eric W

2017-11-04

Evidenced-based processes of care improve patient outcomes, yet universal compliance is lacking, and perceptions of the quality of care are highly variable. The purpose of this study is to examine how differences in clinician and management perceptions on teamwork and communication relate to adherence to hospital processes of care. Hospitals submitted identifiable data for the 2012 Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Hospital Compare. The dependent variable was a composite, developed from the scores on adherence to acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, and pneumonia process of care measures. The primary independent variables reflected 4 safety culture domains: communication openness, feedback about errors, teamwork within units, and teamwork between units. We assigned each hospital into one of 4 groups based on agreement between managers and clinicians on each domain. Each hospital was categorized as "high" (above the median) or "low" (below) for clinicians and managers in communication and teamwork. We found a positive relationship between perceived teamwork and communication climate and processes of care measures. If managers and clinicians perceived the communication openness as high, the hospital was more likely to adhere with processes of care. Similarly, if clinicians perceived teamwork across units as high, the hospital was more likely to adhere to processes of care. Manager and staff perceptions about teamwork and communications impact adherence to processes of care. Policies should recognize the importance of perceptions of both clinicians and managers on teamwork and communication and seek to improve organizational climate and practices. Clinician perceptions of teamwork across units are more closely linked to processes of care, so managers should be cognizant and try to improve their perceptions.

[Assessment of the patient-safety culture in a healthcare district].

PubMed

Pozo Muñoz, F; Padilla Marín, V

2013-01-01

1) To describe the frequency of positive attitudes and behaviours, in terms of patient safety, among the healthcare providers working in a healthcare district; 2) to determine whether the level of safety-related culture differs from other studies; and 3) to analyse negatively valued dimensions, and to establish areas for their improvement. A descriptive, cross-sectional study based on the results of an evaluation of the safety-related culture was conducted on a randomly selected sample of 247 healthcare providers, by using the Spanish adaptation of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC) designed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), as the evaluation tool. Positive and negative responses were analysed, as well as the global score. Results were compared with international and national results. A total of 176 completed survey questionnaires were analysed (response rate: 71.26%); 50% of responders described the safety climate as very good, 37% as acceptable, and 7% as excellent. Strong points were: «Teamwork within the units» (80.82%) and «Supervisor/manager expectations and actions» (80.54%). Dimensions identified for potential improvement included: «Staffing» (37.93%), «Non-punitive response to error» (41.67%), and «Frequency of event reporting» (49.05%). Strong and weak points were identified in the safety-related culture of the healthcare district studied, together with potential improvement areas. Benchmarking at the international level showed that our safety-related culture was within the average of hospitals, while at the national level, our results were above the average of hospitals. Copyright © 2013 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Hydraulic limits on maximum plant transpiration and the emergence of the safety-efficiency trade-off.

PubMed

Manzoni, Stefano; Vico, Giulia; Katul, Gabriel; Palmroth, Sari; Jackson, Robert B; Porporato, Amilcare

2013-04-01

Soil and plant hydraulics constrain ecosystem productivity by setting physical limits to water transport and hence carbon uptake by leaves. While more negative xylem water potentials provide a larger driving force for water transport, they also cause cavitation that limits hydraulic conductivity. An optimum balance between driving force and cavitation occurs at intermediate water potentials, thus defining the maximum transpiration rate the xylem can sustain (denoted as E(max)). The presence of this maximum raises the question as to whether plants regulate transpiration through stomata to function near E(max). To address this question, we calculated E(max) across plant functional types and climates using a hydraulic model and a global database of plant hydraulic traits. The predicted E(max) compared well with measured peak transpiration across plant sizes and growth conditions (R = 0.86, P < 0.001) and was relatively conserved among plant types (for a given plant size), while increasing across climates following the atmospheric evaporative demand. The fact that E(max) was roughly conserved across plant types and scales with the product of xylem saturated conductivity and water potential at 50% cavitation was used here to explain the safety-efficiency trade-off in plant xylem. Stomatal conductance allows maximum transpiration rates despite partial cavitation in the xylem thereby suggesting coordination between stomatal regulation and xylem hydraulic characteristics. © 2013 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2013 New Phytologist Trust.

Hospital survey on patient safety culture: psychometric analysis on a Scottish sample.

PubMed

Sarac, Cakil; Flin, Rhona; Mearns, Kathryn; Jackson, Jeanette

2011-10-01

To investigate the psychometric properties of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture on a Scottish NHS data set. The data were collected from 1969 clinical staff (estimated 22% response rate) from one acute hospital from each of seven Scottish Health boards. Using a split-half validation technique, the data were randomly split; an exploratory factor analysis was conducted on the calibration data set, and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on the validation data set to investigate and check the original US model fit in a Scottish sample. Following the split-half validation technique, exploratory factor analysis results showed a 10-factor optimal measurement model. The confirmatory factor analyses were then performed to compare the model fit of two competing models (10-factor alternative model vs 12-factor original model). An S-B scaled χ(2) square difference test demonstrated that the original 12-factor model performed significantly better in a Scottish sample. Furthermore, reliability analyses of each component yielded satisfactory results. The mean scores on the climate dimensions in the Scottish sample were comparable with those found in other European countries. This study provided evidence that the original 12-factor structure of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture scale has been replicated in this Scottish sample. Therefore, no modifications are required to the original 12-factor model, which is suggested for use, since it would allow researchers the possibility of cross-national comparisons.

Sharing Stories: Community/Science Collaboration and Learning As We Go

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marino, E.; Weyiouanna, A.

2017-12-01

*Annie Weyiouanna is the first author of this presentation - because of AGU funding and submission procedures, Elizabeth Marino is incorrectly identified in the program and online as first author. In Shishmaref, Alaska, climate change is rapidly affecting many aspects of life including subsistence hunting, and seasonal gathering. Also critical is that climate change is creating flooding & erosion on the island that could threaten the safety of the community in the future. Because of this, community members, along with social and natural scientists have been vocal about the fact that something needs to be done to ensure the safety of the community - whether that means protecting the island sufficiently in place, or relocating community members off of the island, or both. In this presentation, Annie Weyiouanna will discuss the seasonal patterns on the island and the effect that climate change has had on her community; Elizabeth Marino will follow up with her perspective as an outsider who has studied the historical construction of risk in Shishmaref. Finally the two will discuss, going forward, how scientists should work to open up avenues for community members to voice their own stories and experiences; and how understanding the links between policy possibilites and local experiences might be a good step going forward to instigate positive change and safety for at risk communities.

An integrative model of organizational safety behavior.

PubMed

Cui, Lin; Fan, Di; Fu, Gui; Zhu, Cherrie Jiuhua

2013-06-01

This study develops an integrative model of safety management based on social cognitive theory and the total safety culture triadic framework. The purpose of the model is to reveal the causal linkages between a hazardous environment, safety climate, and individual safety behaviors. Based on primary survey data from 209 front-line workers in one of the largest state-owned coal mining corporations in China, the model is tested using structural equation modeling techniques. An employee's perception of a hazardous environment is found to have a statistically significant impact on employee safety behaviors through a psychological process mediated by the perception of management commitment to safety and individual beliefs about safety. The integrative model developed here leads to a comprehensive solution that takes into consideration the environmental, organizational and employees' psychological and behavioral aspects of safety management. Copyright © 2013 National Safety Council and Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Relationships between organizational climates and safety-related events at four wood manufacturers

Treesearch

Demetrice D. Evans; Judd H. Michael; Janice K. Wiedenbeck; Charles D. Ray; Charles D. Ray

2005-01-01

Most segments of thewood manufacturing industry place a great deal of emphasis on production in order to meet daily orweekly productivity quotas. Unfortunately, conflicts often exist between productivity and employee safety, aswell as between productivity and quality. The perceived emphasis placed on each of these areas by an organization?s management will cultivate a...

Perceived School and Neighborhood Safety, Neighborhood Violence and Academic Achievement in Urban School Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milam, A. J.; Furr-Holden, C. D. M.; Leaf, P. J.

2010-01-01

Community and school violence continue to be a major public health problem, especially among urban children and adolescents. Little research has focused on the effect of school safety and neighborhood violence on academic performance. This study examines the effect of the school and neighborhood climate on academic achievement among a population…

Does Leadership Matter?: The Relationship of School Leadership to a Safe School Climate, Bullying, and Fighting in Middle School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leff, Jonathan M.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if there is a relationship between transformational principal leadership style, a safe school climate, and school safety (specifically, the number of reported fights and reported bullying incidents) in Broward County, Florida's middle schools. This study also investigated if a relationship…

A Multilevel Analysis of Student Perceptions of School Climate: The Effect of Social and Academic Risk Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fan, Weihua; Williams, Cathy M.; Corkin, Danya Marie

2011-01-01

This multilevel study examines the extent to which individual- and school-level variables are predictive of three aspects of students' perceived school climate (order, safety, and discipline; fairness and clarity of school rules; and teacher-student relationship) by using a nationally representative sample. A wide range of social and academic risk…

Predicting Circulatory Diseases from Psychosocial Safety Climate: A Prospective Cohort Study from Australia

PubMed Central

Becher, Harry; Dollard, Maureen F.; Smith, Peter

2018-01-01

Circulatory diseases (CDs) (including myocardial infarction, angina, stroke or hypertension) are among the leading causes of death in the world. In this paper, we explore for the first time the impact of a specific aspect of organizational climate, Psychosocial Safety Climate (PSC), on CDs. We used two waves of interview data from Australia, with an average lag of 5 years (excluding baseline CDs, final n = 1223). Logistic regression was conducted to estimate the prospective associations between PSC at baseline on incident CDs at follow-up. It was found that participants in low PSC environments were 59% more likely to develop new CD than those in high PSC environments. Logistic regression showed that high PSC at baseline predicts lower CD risk at follow-up (OR = 0.98, 95% CI 0.96–1.00) and this risk remained unchanged even after additional adjustment for known job design risk factors (effort reward imbalance and job strain). These results suggest that PSC is an independent risk factor for CDs in Australia. Beyond job design this study implicates organizational climate and prevailing management values regarding worker psychological health as the genesis of CDs. PMID:29495533

Person-centered work environments, psychological safety, and positive affect in healthcare: a theoretical framework.

PubMed

Rathert, Cheryl; May, Douglas R

2008-01-01

We propose that in order to systematically improve healthcare quality, healthcare organizations (HCOs) need work environments that are person-centered: environments that support the careprovider as well as the patient. We further argue that HCOs have a moral imperative to provide a workplace where professional care standards can be achieved. We draw upon a large body of research from several disciplines to propose and articulate a theoretical framework that explains how the work environment should be related to the well-being of patients and careproviders, that is, the potential mediating mechanisms. Person-centered work environments include: 1. Climates for patient-centered care. 2. Climates for quality improvement. 3. Benevolent ethical climates. Such a work environment should support the provision of patient-centered care, and should lead to positive psychological states for careproviders, including psychological safety and positive affect. The model contributes to theory by specifying relationships between important organizational variables. The model can potentially contribute to practice by linking specific work environment attributes to outcomes for careproviders and patients.

Global Climate Change and Children's Health.

PubMed

Ahdoot, Samantha; Pacheco, Susan E

2015-11-01

Rising global temperature is causing major physical, chemical, and ecological changes across the planet. There is wide consensus among scientific organizations and climatologists that these broad effects, known as climate change, are the result of contemporary human activity. Climate change poses threats to human health, safety, and security. Children are uniquely vulnerable to these threats. The effects of climate change on child health include physical and psychological sequelae of weather disasters, increased heat stress, decreased air quality, altered disease patterns of some climate-sensitive infections, and food, water, and nutrient insecurity in vulnerable regions. Prompt implementation of mitigation and adaptation strategies will protect children against worsening of the problem and its associated health effects. This technical report reviews the nature of climate change and its associated child health effects and supports the recommendations in the accompanying policy statement on climate change and children's health. Copyright © 2015 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Predictors of Likelihood of Speaking Up about Safety Concerns in Labour and Delivery

PubMed Central

Lyndon, Audrey; Sexton, J. Bryan; Simpson, Kathleen Rice; Rosenstein, Alan; Lee, Kathryn A.; Wachter, Robert M.

2011-01-01

Background Despite widespread emphasis on promoting “assertive communication” by caregivers as essential to patient safety improvement efforts, fairly little is known about when and how clinicians speak up to address safety concerns. In this cross-sectional study we use a new measure of speaking up to begin exploring this issue in maternity care. Methods We developed a scenario-based measure of clinician’s assessment of potential harm and likelihood of speaking up in response to perceived harm. We embedded this scale in a survey with measures of safety climate, teamwork climate, disruptive behaviour, work stress, and personality traits of bravery and assertiveness. The survey was distributed to all registered nurses and obstetricians practicing in two US Labour & Delivery units. Results The response rate was 54% (125 of 230 potential respondents). Respondents were experienced clinicians (13.7 ± 11 years in specialty). Higher perception of harm, respondent role, specialty experience, and site predicted likelihood of speaking up when controlling for bravery and assertiveness. Physicians rated potential harm in common clinical scenarios lower than nurses did (7.5 vs. 8.4 on 2–10 scale; p<0.001). Some participants (12%) indicated they were unlikely to speak up despite perceiving high potential for harm in certain situations. Discussion This exploratory study found nurses and physicians differed in their harm ratings, and harm rating was a predictor of speaking up. This may partially explain persistent discrepancies between physicians and nurses in teamwork climate scores. Differing assessments of potential harms inherent in everyday practice may be a target for teamwork intervention in maternity care. PMID:22927492

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Assessing and addressing moral distress and ethical climate, part 1.

PubMed

Sauerland, Jeanie; Marotta, Kathleen; Peinemann, Mary Anne; Berndt, Andrea; Robichaux, Catherine

2014-01-01

There is minimal research exploring moral distress and its relationship to ethical climate among nurses working in acute care settings. Objectives of the study were to explore moral distress, moral residue, and perception of ethical climate among registered nurses working in an academic medical center and develop interventions to address study findings. A mixed-methods design was used. Two versions of Corley and colleagues' Moral Distress Scale, adult and pediatric/neonatal, were used in addition to Olson's Hospital Ethical Climate Survey. Participants were invited to respond to 2 open-ended questions. This article reports the results for those nurses working in adult acute and critical care units. The sample (N = 225) was predominantly female (80%); half held a bachelor of science in nursing or higher, were aged 30 to 49 years, and staff nurses (77.3%). The mean item score for moral distress intensity ranged from 3.79 (SD, 2.21) to 2.14 (SD, 2.42) with mean item score frequency ranging from 2.86 (SD, 1.88) to 0.23 (SD, 0.93). The mean score for total Hospital Ethical Climate Survey was 94.39 (SD, 18.3) ranging from 23 to 130. Qualitative comments described bullying, lateral violence, and retribution. Inadequate staffing and perceived incompetent coworkers were the most distressing items. Almost 22% left a previous position because of moral distress and perceived the current climate to be less ethical compared with other participants. Findings may potentially impact nurse retention and recruitment and negatively affect the quality and safety of patient care. Interventions developed focus on the individual nurse, including ethics education and coping skills, intraprofessional/interprofessional approaches, and administrative/policy strategies.

Thermal Tolerance of the Coffee Berry Borer Hypothenemus hampei: Predictions of Climate Change Impact on a Tropical Insect Pest

PubMed Central

Jaramillo, Juliana; Chabi-Olaye, Adenirin; Kamonjo, Charles; Jaramillo, Alvaro; Vega, Fernando E.; Poehling, Hans-Michael; Borgemeister, Christian

2009-01-01

Coffee is predicted to be severely affected by climate change. We determined the thermal tolerance of the coffee berry borer , Hypothenemus hampei, the most devastating pest of coffee worldwide, and make inferences on the possible effects of climate change using climatic data from Colombia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Ethiopia. For this, the effect of eight temperature regimes (15, 20, 23, 25, 27, 30, 33 and 35°C) on the bionomics of H. hampei was studied. Successful egg to adult development occurred between 20–30°C. Using linear regression and a modified Logan model, the lower and upper thresholds for development were estimated at 14.9 and 32°C, respectively. In Kenya and Colombia, the number of pest generations per year was considerably and positively correlated with the warming tolerance. Analysing 32 years of climatic data from Jimma (Ethiopia) revealed that before 1984 it was too cold for H. hampei to complete even one generation per year, but thereafter, because of rising temperatures in the area, 1–2 generations per year/coffee season could be completed. Calculated data on warming tolerance and thermal safety margins of H. hampei for the three East African locations showed considerably high variability compared to the Colombian site. The model indicates that for every 1°C rise in thermal optimum (Topt.), the maximum intrinsic rate of increase (r max) will increase by an average of 8.5%. The effects of climate change on the further range of H. hampei distribution and possible adaption strategies are discussed. Abstracts in Spanish and French are provided as supplementary material Abstract S1 and Abstract S2. PMID:19649255

Nursing competency and organizational climate as perceived by staff nurses in a Chinese university hospital.

PubMed

Ying, Liu; Kunaviktikul, Wipada; Tonmukayakal, Ouyporn

2007-09-01

Nursing competency is important to ensure patient safety and improve the quality of nursing care. Based on competency-based human resource management strategies, the organizational climate can positively influence nursing competency. However, a review of the literature indicated that there were no studies about the relationship between nursing competency and organizational climate in the People's Republic of China. This descriptive, correlational study examined the relationship between nursing competency and the organizational climate. The sample consisted of 243 staff nurses who completed the questionnaire worked at one university hospital in Liao Ning Province. The findings showed that there was a significantly moderate positive relationship between nursing competency and organizational climate. The study results suggested that Chinese nurse managers should maintain and provide a positive organizational climate to improve nursing competency.

Safety First: A Quantitative Study on Teachers' Perceptions of School Climate in Rural Louisiana Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brumfield-Sanders, Tongia M.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this descriptive quantitative study was to explore the perceptions of school safety among middle and high school teachers in rural Louisiana. In order to achieve this objective, a specific research question was formulated pertaining to teacher perceptions. The Safe Communities Safe Schools (SCSS) survey was used to assess teachers'…

Work Climate, Organizational Commitment, and Highway Safety in the Trucking Industry: Toward Causal Modeling of Large Truck Crashes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graham, Carroll M.; Scott, Aaron J.; Nafukho, Fredrick M.

2008-01-01

While theoretical models aimed at explaining or predicting employee turnover outcomes have been developed, minimal consideration has been given to the same task regarding safety, often measured as the probability of a crash in a given time frame. The present literature review identifies four constructs from turnover literature, which are believed…

Effects of abiotic stress and crop management on cereal grain composition: implications for food quality and safety.

PubMed

Halford, Nigel G; Curtis, Tanya Y; Chen, Zhiwei; Huang, Jianhua

2015-03-01

The effects of abiotic stresses and crop management on cereal grain composition are reviewed, focusing on phytochemicals, vitamins, fibre, protein, free amino acids, sugars, and oils. These effects are discussed in the context of nutritional and processing quality and the potential for formation of processing contaminants, such as acrylamide, furan, hydroxymethylfurfuryl, and trans fatty acids. The implications of climate change for cereal grain quality and food safety are considered. It is concluded that the identification of specific environmental stresses that affect grain composition in ways that have implications for food quality and safety and how these stresses interact with genetic factors and will be affected by climate change needs more investigation. Plant researchers and breeders are encouraged to address the issue of processing contaminants or risk appearing out of touch with major end-users in the food industry, and not to overlook the effects of environmental stresses and crop management on crop composition, quality, and safety as they strive to increase yield. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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EPA's six research priorities: Air, Climate, Energy; Chemical Safety for Sustainability, Homeland Security, Human Health Risk Assessment, Sustainable and Healthy Communities, Safe and Sustainable Water Resources.

Climate-related trends in sapwood biophysical properties in two conifers: avoidance of hydraulic dysfunction through coordinated adjustments in xylem efficiency, safety and capacitance

Treesearch

David M. Barnard; Frederick C. Meinzer; Barbara Lachenbruch; Katherine A. McCulloh; Daniel M. Johnson; David R. Woodruff

2011-01-01

In the Pacific north-west, the Cascade Mountain Range blocks much of the precipitation and maritime influence of the Pacific Ocean, resulting in distinct climates east and west of the mountains. The current study aimed to investigate relationships between water storage and transport properties in populations of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)...

Food Safety Program in Asian Countries.

PubMed

Yamaguchi, Ryuji; Hwang, Lucy Sun

2015-01-01

By using the ILSI network in Asia, we are holding a session focused on food safety programs in several Asian areas. In view of the external environment, it is expected to impact the global food system in the near future, including the rapid increase in food demand and in public health services due to population growth, as well as the threats to biosecurity and food safety due to the rapid globalization of the food trade. Facilitating effective information sharing holds promise for the activation of the food industry. At this session, Prof. Hwang shares the current situation of Food Safety and Sanitation Regulations in Taiwan. Dr. Liu provides a talk on the role of risk assessment in food regulatory control focused on aluminum-containing food additives in China. After the JECFA evaluation of aluminum-containing food additives in 2011, each country has carried out risk assessment based on dietary intake surveys. Ms. Chan reports on the activities of a working group on Food Standards Harmonization in ASEAN. She also explains that the ILSI Southeast Asia Region has actively supported the various ASEAN Working Groups in utilizing science to harmonize food standards. Prof. Park provides current research activities in Korea focused on the effect of climate change on food safety. Climate change is generally seen as having a negative impact on food security, particularly in developing countries. We use these four presentations as a springboard to vigorous discussion on issues related to Food Safety in Asia.

Integration of Linear Dynamic Emission and Climate Models with Air Traffic Simulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sridhar, Banavar; Ng, Hok K.; Chen, Neil Y.

2012-01-01

Future air traffic management systems are required to balance the conflicting objectives of maximizing safety and efficiency of traffic flows while minimizing the climate impact of aviation emissions and contrails. Integrating emission and climate models together with air traffic simulations improve the understanding of the complex interaction between the physical climate system, carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions and aviation activity. This paper integrates a national-level air traffic simulation and optimization capability with simple climate models and carbon cycle models, and climate metrics to assess the impact of aviation on climate. The capability can be used to make trade-offs between extra fuel cost and reduction in global surface temperature change. The parameters in the simulation can be used to evaluate the effect of various uncertainties in emission models and contrails and the impact of different decision horizons. Alternatively, the optimization results from the simulation can be used as inputs to other tools that monetize global climate impacts like the FAA s Aviation Environmental Portfolio Management Tool for Impacts.

Factors influencing teamwork and collaboration within a tertiary medical center

PubMed Central

Chien, Shu Feng; Wan, Thomas TH; Chen, Yu-Chih

2012-01-01

AIM: To understand how work climate and related factors influence teamwork and collaboration in a large medical center. METHODS: A survey of 3462 employees was conducted to generate responses to Sexton’s Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ) to assess perceptions of work environment via a series of five-point, Likert-scaled questions. Path analysis was performed, using teamwork (TW) and collaboration (CO) as endogenous variables. The exogenous variables are effective communication (EC), safety culture (SC), job satisfaction (JS), work pressure (PR), and work climate (WC). The measurement instruments for the variables or summated subscales are presented. Reliability of each sub-scale are calculated. Alpha Cronbach coefficients are relatively strong: TW (0.81), CO (0.76), EC (0.70), SC (0.83), JS (0.91), WP (0.85), and WC (0.78). Confirmatory factor analysis was performed for each of these constructs. RESULTS: Path analysis enables to identify statistically significant predictors of two endogenous variables, teamwork and intra-organizational collaboration. Significant amounts of variance in perceived teamwork (R2 = 0.59) and in collaboration (R2 = 0.75) are accounted for by the predictor variables. In the initial model, safety culture is the most important predictor of perceived teamwork, with a β weight of 0.51, and work climate is the most significant predictor of collaboration, with a β weight of 0.84. After eliminating statistically insignificant causal paths and allowing correlated predictors1, the revised model shows that work climate is the only predictor positively influencing both teamwork (β = 0.26) and collaboration (β = 0.88). A relatively weak positive (β = 0.14) but statistically significant relationship exists between teamwork and collaboration when the effects of other predictors are simultaneously controlled. CONCLUSION: Hospital executives who are interested in improving collaboration should assess the work climate to ensure that employees are operating in a setting conducive to intra-organizational collaboration. PMID:25237612

Thermal-safety margins and the necessity of thermoregulatory behavior across latitude and elevation

PubMed Central

Sunday, Jennifer M.; Bates, Amanda E.; Kearney, Michael R.; Colwell, Robert K.; Dulvy, Nicholas K.; Longino, John T.; Huey, Raymond B.

2014-01-01

Physiological thermal-tolerance limits of terrestrial ectotherms often exceed local air temperatures, implying a high degree of thermal safety (an excess of warm or cold thermal tolerance). However, air temperatures can be very different from the equilibrium body temperature of an individual ectotherm. Here, we compile thermal-tolerance limits of ectotherms across a wide range of latitudes and elevations and compare these thermal limits both to air and to operative body temperatures (theoretically equilibrated body temperatures) of small ectothermic animals during the warmest and coldest times of the year. We show that extreme operative body temperatures in exposed habitats match or exceed the physiological thermal limits of most ectotherms. Therefore, contrary to previous findings using air temperatures, most ectotherms do not have a physiological thermal-safety margin. They must therefore rely on behavior to avoid overheating during the warmest times, especially in the lowland tropics. Likewise, species living at temperate latitudes and in alpine habitats must retreat to avoid lethal cold exposure. Behavioral plasticity of habitat use and the energetic consequences of thermal retreats are therefore critical aspects of species’ vulnerability to climate warming and extreme events. PMID:24616528

Thermal-safety margins and the necessity of thermoregulatory behavior across latitude and elevation.

PubMed

Sunday, Jennifer M; Bates, Amanda E; Kearney, Michael R; Colwell, Robert K; Dulvy, Nicholas K; Longino, John T; Huey, Raymond B

2014-04-15

Physiological thermal-tolerance limits of terrestrial ectotherms often exceed local air temperatures, implying a high degree of thermal safety (an excess of warm or cold thermal tolerance). However, air temperatures can be very different from the equilibrium body temperature of an individual ectotherm. Here, we compile thermal-tolerance limits of ectotherms across a wide range of latitudes and elevations and compare these thermal limits both to air and to operative body temperatures (theoretically equilibrated body temperatures) of small ectothermic animals during the warmest and coldest times of the year. We show that extreme operative body temperatures in exposed habitats match or exceed the physiological thermal limits of most ectotherms. Therefore, contrary to previous findings using air temperatures, most ectotherms do not have a physiological thermal-safety margin. They must therefore rely on behavior to avoid overheating during the warmest times, especially in the lowland tropics. Likewise, species living at temperate latitudes and in alpine habitats must retreat to avoid lethal cold exposure. Behavioral plasticity of habitat use and the energetic consequences of thermal retreats are therefore critical aspects of species' vulnerability to climate warming and extreme events.

Community-based participatory process--climate change and health adaptation program for Northern First Nations and Inuit in Canada.

PubMed

McClymont Peace, Diane; Myers, Erin

2012-05-08

Health Canada's Program for Climate Change and Health Adaptation in Northern First Nation and Inuit Communities is unique among Canadian federal programs in that it enables community-based participatory research by northern communities. The program was designed to build capacity by funding communities to conduct their own research in cooperation with Aboriginal associations, academics, and governments; that way, communities could develop health-related adaptation plans and communication materials that would help in adaptation decision-making at the community, regional, national and circumpolar levels with respect to human health and a changing environment. Community visits and workshops were held to familiarize northerners with the impacts of climate change on their health, as well as methods to develop research proposals and budgets to meet program requirements. Since the launch of the Climate Change and Health Adaptation Program in 2008, Health Canada has funded 36 community projects across Canada's North that focus on relevant health issues caused by climate change. In addition, the program supported capacity-building workshops for northerners, as well as a Pan-Arctic Results Workshop to bring communities together to showcase the results of their research. Results include: numerous films and photo-voice products that engage youth and elders and are available on the web; community-based ice monitoring, surveillance and communication networks; and information products on land, water and ice safety, drinking water, food security and safety, and traditional medicine. Through these efforts, communities have increased their knowledge and understanding of the health effects related to climate change and have begun to develop local adaptation strategies.

Complying with Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations: a guide for compounding pharmacists.

PubMed

Mixon, Bill; Nain, John

2013-01-01

In the compounding pharmacy, compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations is essential to protect employees and customers from exposure to hazardous substances and a dangerous environment, to avert heavy fines and penalties levied for noncompliance, and to fulfill the moral obligation of pharmacists to do no harm. Without adequate vigilance, compounders are vulnerable to lapses in adherence to Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements, the results of which can be dire in a climate of increased scrutiny about the safety and integrity of pharmaceutical compounding. Proactively addressing necessary compliance with essential safety regulations can only benefit compounders and their staff and clients, and guidance from an expert in Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements can be a key factor in accomplishing that goal.

Work environment and safety climate in the Swedish merchant fleet.

PubMed

Forsell, Karl; Eriksson, Helena; Järvholm, Bengt; Lundh, Monica; Andersson, Eva; Nilsson, Ralph

2017-02-01

To get knowledge of the work environment for seafarers sailing under the Swedish flag, in terms of safety climate, ergonomical, chemical and psychosocial exposures, and the seafarers self-rated health and work ability. A Web-based questionnaire was sent to all seafarers with a personal e-mail address in the Swedish Maritime Registry (N = 5608). Comparisons were made mainly within the study population, using Student's t test, prevalence odds ratios and logistic regressions with 95% confidence intervals. The response rate was 35% (N = 1972; 10% women, 90% men), with 61% of the respondents working on deck, 31% in the engine room and 7% in the catering/service department (1% not classifiable). Strain on neck, arm or back and heavy lifting were associated with female gender (p = 0.0001) and younger age (below or above 30 years of age, p < 0.0001). Exposures to exhausts, oils and dust were commonly reported. Major work problems were noise, risk of an accident and vibrations from the hull of the ship. The safety climate was high in comparison with that in land-based occupations. One-fourth had experienced personal harassment or bullying during last year of service. Noise, risk of accidents, hand/arm and whole-body vibrations and psychosocial factors such as harassment were commonly reported work environment problems among seafarers within the Swedish merchant fleet.

Determinants of workplace violence against clinical physicians in hospitals.

PubMed

Wu, Jeng-Cheng; Tung, Tao-Hsin; Chen, Peter Y; Chen, Ying-Lin; Lin, Yu-Wen; Chen, Fu-Li

2015-01-01

Workplace violence in the health sector is a worldwide concern. Physicians play an essential role in health-care teamwork; thus, understanding how organizational factors influence workplace violence against physicians is critical. A total of 189 physicians from three public hospitals and one private hospital in Northern Taiwan completed a survey, and the response rate was 47.1%. This study was approved by the institutional review board of each participating hospital. The 189 physicians were selected from the Taipei area, Taiwan. The results showed that 41.5% of the respondents had received at least one workplace-related physical or verbal violent threat, and that 9.8% of the respondents had experienced at least one episode of sexual harassment in the 3 months before the survey. Logistic regression analysis revealed that physicians in psychiatry or emergency medicine departments received more violent threats and sexual harassment than physicians in other departments. Furthermore, physicians with a lower workplace safety climate (OR=0.89; 95% CI=0.81-0.98) and more job demands (OR=1.15; 95% CI=1.02-1.30) were more likely to receive violent threats. This study found that workplace violence was associated with job demands and the workplace safety climate. Therefore, determining how to develop a workplace safety climate and ensure a safe job environment for physicians is a crucial management policy issue for health-care systems.

Checklists, safety, my culture and me.

PubMed

Raghunathan, Karthik

2012-07-01

The world is not flat. Hierarchy is a fact of life in society and in healthcare institutions. National, specialty-specific and institutional cultures may play an important role in shaping today's patient-safety climate. The influence of power distance on safety interventions is under-studied. Checklists may make power distance-hampered negotiations easier by providing a standardised aviation-like framework for communications and by democratising the environment. By using surveys and simulation, we might discover patterns of potentially hidden yet problematic interactions that might foster maintenance of the error swamp. We need to understand how people interact as members of a group as this is crucial for the development of generalisable safety interventions.

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SBAR improves communication and safety climate and decreases incident reports due to communication errors in an anaesthetic clinic: a prospective intervention study.

PubMed

Randmaa, Maria; Mårtensson, Gunilla; Leo Swenne, Christine; Engström, Maria

2014-01-21

We aimed to examine staff members' perceptions of communication within and between different professions, safety attitudes and psychological empowerment, prior to and after implementation of the communication tool Situation-Background-Assessment-Recommendation (SBAR) at an anaesthetic clinic. The aim was also to study whether there was any change in the proportion of incident reports caused by communication errors. A prospective intervention study with comparison group using preassessments and postassessments. Questionnaire data were collected from staff in an intervention (n=100) and a comparison group (n=69) at the anaesthetic clinic in two hospitals prior to (2011) and after (2012) implementation of SBAR. The proportion of incident reports due to communication errors was calculated during a 1-year period prior to and after implementation. Anaesthetic clinics at two hospitals in Sweden. All licensed practical nurses, registered nurses and physicians working in the operating theatres, intensive care units and postanaesthesia care units at anaesthetic clinics in two hospitals were invited to participate. Implementation of SBAR in an anaesthetic clinic. The primary outcomes were staff members' perception of communication within and between different professions, as well as their perceptions of safety attitudes. Secondary outcomes were psychological empowerment and incident reports due to error of communication. In the intervention group, there were statistically significant improvements in the factors 'Between-group communication accuracy' (p=0.039) and 'Safety climate' (p=0.011). The proportion of incident reports due to communication errors decreased significantly (p<0.0001) in the intervention group, from 31% to 11%. Implementing the communication tool SBAR in anaesthetic clinics was associated with improvement in staff members' perception of communication between professionals and their perception of the safety climate as well as with a decreased proportion of incident reports related to communication errors. ISRCTN37251313.

Measuring organisational-level Aboriginal cultural climate to tailor cultural safety strategies.

PubMed

Gladman, Justin; Ryder, Courtney; Walters, Lucie K

2015-01-01

Australian medical schools have taken on a social accountability mandate to provide culturally safe contexts in order to encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to engage in medical education and to ensure that present and future clinicians provide health services that contribute to improving the health outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Many programs have sought to improve cultural safety through training at an individual level; however, it is well recognised that learners tend to internalise the patterns of behaviour to which they are commonly exposed. This project aimed to measure and reflect on the cultural climate of an Australian rural clinical school (RCS) as a whole and the collective attitudes of three different professional groups: clinicians, clinical academics and professional staff. The project then drew on Mezirow's Transformative Learning theory to design strategies to build on the cultural safety of the organisation. Clinicians, academic and professional staff at an Australian RCS were invited to participate in an online survey expressing their views on Aboriginal health using part of a previously validated tool. Survey response rate was 63%. All three groups saw Aboriginal health as a social priority. All groups recognised the fundamental role of community control in Aboriginal health; however, clinical academics were considerably more likely to disagree that the Western medical model suited the health needs of Aboriginal people. Clinicians were more likely to perceive that they treated Aboriginal patients the same as other patients. There was only weak evidence of future commitments to Aboriginal health. Importantly, clinicians, academics and professional staff demonstrated differences in their cultural safety profile which indicated the need for a tailored approach to cultural safety learning in the future. Through tailored approaches to cross-cultural training opportunities we are likely to ensure participants are able to engage with the material and reflect upon implications of a challenging cultural climate on the health and wellbeing outcomes of Aboriginal people.

Interactive training improves workplace climate, knowledge, and support towards domestic violence.

PubMed

Glass, Nancy; Hanson, Ginger C; Laharnar, Naima; Anger, W Kent; Perrin, Nancy

2016-07-01

As Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) affects the workplace, a supportive workplace climate is important. The study evaluated the effectiveness of an "IPV and the Workplace" training on workplace climate towards IPV. IPV training was provided to 14 intervention counties and 13 control counties (receiving training 6 months delayed). Measures included workplace climate surveys, IPV knowledge test, and workplace observations. (i) Training significantly improved supervisor knowledge on IPV and received positive evaluations, (ii) training improved workplace climate towards IPV significantly which was maintained over time, and (iii) after the training, supervisors provided more IPV information to employees and more IPV postings were available in the workplace. The study provides evidence to support on-site interactive, computer based training as a means for improved workplace safety. IPV and the Workplace training effectively increased knowledge and positively changed workplace climate. Am. J. Ind. Med. 59:538-548, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A Deeper Understanding of Cultural Safety, Colonising and Seating in a Teacher Education Program: a Preliminary Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harrison, Ed; McKay, Peter; Spencer, Marsha; Trimble, Bernadette

2017-01-01

This preliminary study considers the implications of where students of Aboriginal descent sat in a teacher education classroom, its significance in relation to the space of the classroom, the importance of the place to the individual and its links to creating a climate of cultural safety in the classroom. Six students from two cohorts of varying…

In the Shadow of the Arch: Safety and Acceptance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Students at the University of Georgia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Robert J.; Childers, JoEllen; Childs, Adrian P.; Cowie, Gail; Hatton, Annette; Lewis, Jamie B.; MacNair, Nancy; Oswalt, Sara; Perez, Ruperto M.; Valentine, Thomas

The Campus Climate Research Group at the University of Georgia conducted a survey to explore safety and acceptance issues for lesbian, gay, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students at the university. The findings are based on 82 questionnaires returned form 223 surveys distributed to the LGBTQ community in fall 2001. The research results indicate…

Thermal stress in North Western Australian iron ore mining staff.

PubMed

Peiffer, Jeremiah J; Abbiss, Chris R

2013-05-01

Demand for Australian mined iron ore has increased employment within this sector, thus exposing increased numbers of workers to the harsh Australian climate. This study examined the influence of hot (>30°C wet bulb globe temperature) environmental temperatures, consistent with working in North Western Australia, on iron ore mining staff. Core temperature, hydration status, perceived exertion, mood, and fatigue state were measured in 77 participants at three time points (pre-, mid-, and post-shift) during a normal 12-h shift at an open-cut iron ore mining/processing site (n = 31; Site1) and an iron ore processing/shipping site (n = 46; Site2). A significant effect for time was observed for core temperature with greater mean core temperatures measured mid-shift (37.5±0.4°C) and post-shift (37.6±0.3°C) compared with pre-shift values (37.0±0.5°C). All mean core temperature measures were lower than ISO7933 thresholds (38°C) for thermal safety. Mean hydration measures [urine-specific gravity (USG)] were greater at Site1 (1.029±0.006) compared with those at Site2 (1.021±0.007). Furthermore, both pre- and post-shift measures from Site1 and the post-shift measures from Site2 were greater than the threshold for dehydration (USG = 1.020). No differences were observed for mood or perceived exertion over time; however, measures of fatigue state were greater post-shift compared with pre- and mid-shift values for both sites. Our findings indicate that the majority of mine workers in North Western Australia are able to regulate work rate in hot environments to maintain core temperatures below ISO safety guidelines; however, 22% of workers reached or exceeded the safety guidelines, warranting further investigation. Furthermore, hydration practices, especially when off-work, appear inadequate and could endanger health and safety.

[Increasing Number of Road Traffic Fatalities in Germany - Turnaround or Snap-Shot].

PubMed

Brand, S; Schmucker, U; Lob, G; Haasper, C; Juhra, C; Hell, W; Rieth, P; Matthes, G

2017-04-01

Introduction: For the first time since 20 years, the number of road accident fatalities in 2011 increased on German roads compared to earlier periods. Methods and Results: The presented paper submitted by the expert group for accident prevention investigates and discusses possible reasons for the observed increase in road traffic fatalities. Results: Climate changes as well as changes in economic environment, and technological progress in car and passenger safety are identified as possible reasons for the observed increase. Discussion: Mentioning the "Decade of Action for Road Safety" initiated by the UNO and coordinated by the WHO, the overall goal is a worldwide reduction of accident related road fatalities. But prognostic calculations predict an asymptotic approximation to a limit of road fatalities. To achieve a reduction by half until 2020 intense collaboration and disproportional expenditure are necessary. Conclusion: From the authors' point of view the current increase of traffic fatalities in Germany is rated as a snapshot rather than a turnaround. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Repins, Ingrid; Jordan, Dirk; Bosco, Nick

The proposed new IEC standard will address the test temperature requirements in IEC 61215 (module design), IEC 61730 (module safety), IEC 62790 (junction box safety) and IEC 62852 (connectors), and will provide guidelines to modify temperature limits in four existing standards to better describe module performance in hotter climates. This workshop includes four presentations: Special Testing for Modules Deployed in Hot Use Environments - Are We Doing This in a Low-Cost Way?, Experimental Evidence, Why the highest temperatures are the most stressful to PV modules during thermal cycling, and Safety Aspects for Modules Deployed in Hot Use Environments.

Evaluation and Mitigation of the Risk Due to Climate Change at the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Werth, D. W.

2016-12-01

The state of South Carolina, home to the Department of Energy's (DOE) Savannah River Site (SRS), has been identified as facing an `above average' risk due to extreme heat, and the threat due to wildfire is expected to nearly double by 2050. To comply with DOE requirements that each of its sites prepares for climate change, the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) is involved in an ongoing process to evaluate the site vulnerability and establish policies to mitigate those effects. This requires close cooperation between the managers of various site facilities and on-site climate researchers. The Atmospheric Technologies Group at SRNL currently provides short-term weather forecasts to support outdoor activities on site, but is also now working with site decision-makers to achieve DOE's goals of climate change mitigation and adaptation. We will discuss the results of our climate vulnerability assessment, which includes the effects of climate change on the energy requirements for mission critical infrastructure, the health, safety and productivity of the outdoor workforce, the danger of fire in the SRS forest, and the levels of surface water impoundments. (The latter of which must be maintained to avoid the release of radioactive contaminants sequestered beneath them). For each of these, existing climate change projections were carefully studied and `translated' into numerical indices relevant to facility personnel at SRS, along with a vulnerability rating (also based on conversations with site workers) to estimate the most endangered `assets'. We will also explain the process we have developed to facilitate effective communication between researchers and managers - involving them both in the development of the climate vulnerability assessment and the next steps toward planning, resource allocation, actions to mitigate rising costs, and safety considerations as well as helping the site remain sustainable throughout the future of its missions.

Musculoskeletal pain and discomfort and associated worker and organizational factors: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Stewart, Sasha K; Rothmore, Paul R; Doda, Diana V D; Hiller, Janet E; Mahmood, M A; Pisaniello, Dino L

2014-01-01

Musculoskeletal disorders are a leading cause of work-related ill health, and a major cost burden for the individual, industry and the community. Despite the broad range of risk factors that have been identified, most studies have focused only on specific occupations or categories of risk factors, meaning that there is limited understanding of the relative contributions of individual and organisational, physical and psychosocial factors. This cross-sectional survey of workers in medium-to-large workplaces in South Australia sought to examine a broad range of factors within various workplaces and industries. 404 workers from 29 workgroups and 23 separate companies participated in the research. Questionnaires were administered face-to-face, assessing demographic and job characteristics, safety climate, musculoskeletal pain and discomfort (MSPD) and job satisfaction. Potential predictors were grouped in terms of personal/job and organizational characteristics and associations with MSPD examined. A considerable proportion of workers (40%) had experienced MSPD in the last 7 days and 15% had experienced severe MSPD. In a multivariate model, four variables were found to be significantly associated with MSPD, namely being aged > or =40 years (adjusted odds ratio=1.73), overall job satisfaction (negatively associated) (AOR=0.37), medium (vs. large) company size (AOR=1.80) and workgroup safety climate score (negatively associated) (AOR=0.58). The results confirm a link between non-physical factors and work-related musculoskeletal disorders, suggesting that these factors should received increased attention as part of overall health and safety strategies. Organizations should give greater consideration to both the satisfaction of their employees and organizational factors that set the tone for safety climate.

12 CFR 228.21 - Performance tests, standards, and ratings, in general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... obtained from community organizations, state, local, and tribal governments, economic development agencies... condition of the bank, the economic climate (national, regional, and local), safety and soundness...

12 CFR 25.21 - Performance tests, standards, and ratings, in general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... from community organizations, state, local, and tribal governments, economic development agencies, or... of the bank, the economic climate (national, regional, and local), safety and soundness limitations...

12 CFR 345.21 - Performance tests, standards, and ratings, in general.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... from community organizations, state, local, and tribal governments, economic development agencies, or... of the bank, the economic climate (national, regional, and local), safety and soundness limitations...

Travelers' Health: Injuries and Safety

MedlinePlus

... Climates Humanitarian Aid Workers Humanitarian Aid Workers in Ecuador Insurance International Adoption Jet Lag Last-Minute Travel Long-Term Travel Mass Gatherings Medical Tourism Mental Health Motion Sickness Natural Disasters Pregnant Travelers ...

Impact of the time-out process on safety attitude in a tertiary neurosurgical department.

PubMed

McLaughlin, Nancy; Winograd, Deborah; Chung, Hallie R; Van de Wiele, Barbara; Martin, Neil A

2014-11-01

In July 2011, the UCLA Health System released its current time-out process protocol used across the Health System. Numerous interventions were performed to improve checklist completion and time-out process observance. This study assessed the impact of the current protocol for the time-out on healthcare providers' safety attitude and operating room safety climate. All members involved in neurosurgical procedures in the main operating room of the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center were asked to anonymously complete an online survey on their overall perception of the time-out process. The survey was completed by 93 of 128 members of the surgical team. Overall, 98.9% felt that performing a pre-incision time-out improves patient safety. The majority of respondents (97.8%) felt that the team member introductions helped to promote a team spirit during the case. In addition, 93.5% felt that performing a time-out helped to ensure all team members were comfortable to voice safety concerns throughout the case. All respondents felt that the attending surgeon should be present during the time-out and 76.3% felt that he/she should lead the time-out. Unanimously, it was felt that the review of anticipated critical elements by the attending surgeon was helpful to respondents' role during the case. Responses revealed that although the time-out brings the team together physically, it does not necessarily reinforce teamwork. The time-out process favorably impacted team members' safety attitudes and perception as well as overall safety climate in neurosurgical ORs. Survey responses identified leadership training and teamwork training as two avenues for future improvement. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Patient safety attitudes of paediatric trainee physicians.

PubMed

Parry, G; Horowitz, L; Goldmann, D

2009-12-01

To measure the patient safety attitudes of trainee physicians at an academic paediatric hospital. Cross-sectional survey. An academic paediatric hospital. 209 trainee physicians based at the academic paediatric hospital in January 2004. Patient safety attitudes of trainee physicians measured using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (Inpatient Version) and a specific trainee survey. In the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire, responses were most positive in areas associated with independent care: job satisfaction (mean factor score = 77.5) safety climate (76.1), working conditions (75.6), perception of management (70.4) and less positively in areas associated with interdependent care: teamwork climate (64.6) and stress recognition (59.1). In the trainee survey, following a principal component analysis to identify summary factors, responses were most positive in the independent areas of clinical supervision and support (75.0), communication with their immediate senior physician (65.5) and orientation of new personnel (63.9), and less positive in the interdependent areas of handoffs and multiple services, (58.1), role identification during codes (51.0) and support following an adverse event (42.8). The combined independent factor scores were higher than the interdependent (difference = 17.9, 95% CI 16.1 to 19.7, p<0.001). Fellows reported higher independent factor scores than residents (5.5, 95% CI 2.2 to 8.9, p = 0.001), but not for the interdependent scores (-0.5, 95% CI -3.6 to 2.7, p = 0.767). Trainees appear comfortable with caring independently for patients but less so caring interdependently. With experience, trainee physicians may experience improvement in their ability to act independently but not interdependently. Recently developed patient safety culture instruments may enable additional understanding of what could be implemented to make improvements.

Meteorology and ethnicity as critical factors in HRIPT: Comparing responses between Chinese and Indian ethnicities.

PubMed

Yuan, Chao; Wang, Xue-Min; Galzote, Carlos; Tan, Yi-Mei; Bhagat, Kamlesh V; Yuan, Zhi-Kang; Du, Jian-Fei; Tan, Yuan

2013-06-01

Human repeated insult patch test (HRIPT) is regarded as one of the confirmatory test in determining the safety of skin sensitizers. A number of important factors should be considered when conducting and interpreting the results of the HRIPT. To investigate for probable critical factors that influence the results of HRIPT with the same protocol in Shanghai and Mumbai. Two HRIPTs were carried out in Shanghai and Mumbai in 2011. Six identical products and 1% sodium lauryl sulfate were tested. Two Chinese dermatologists performed the grading in the two cities. Climate conditions of Shanghai and Mumbai were also recorded. For four lower reaction ratio products, cumulative irritation scores in the induction phase were higher in individuals whose ethnicity was Indian rather than Chinese. Reaction ratio of the same four products was highly correlated to the climatic parameters. The other two higher reaction ratio products and the positive control had no difference between the two ethnicities. Greater attention ought to be paid to the impact of climate on the results of HRIPT, especially for the mild irritation cosmetics when giving the interpretation. Greater emphasis also needs to be placed on the ethnicity of the subjects. Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Contributors to young drivers' driving styles - A comparison between Israel and Queensland.

PubMed

Skvirsky, Vera; Ben-Ari, Orit Taubman; Greenbury, Timothy J; Prato, Carlo G

2017-12-01

Among the numerous factors that contribute to young novice drivers' driving styles, personality characteristics, sociodemographic variables, family atmosphere, and friends' norms are known to have an important impact. However, cross-cultural comparisons are relatively rare in the safety literature concerning young drivers. This study aimed at comparing young drivers from Israel and Queensland (Australia) and examining the contribution of personality, sociodemographic, family and friends' aspects to their driving styles (reckless and careless; hostile and angry; anxious; patient and careful). More specifically, this study examined the associations between young drivers' driving style and their perceptions of separation-individuation, the family climate for road safety, and the safe driving climate among friends. We also examined sociodemographic and driving history variables such as gender, the marital status of parents, and personal exposure to traffic crashes. The study consisted of two samples of male and female young drivers (age 17-22) from Israel (n=160) and Queensland (n=160), who completed a set of valid and reliable self-report questionnaires. Findings indicate that in general, maladaptive driving styles are associated with lower family tendency to engage in promoting road safety, higher pressure and costs of driving with peers, and unhealthier separation-individuation aspects. The opposite is observed for the patient and careful driving style that relates to higher engagement of the family in road safety, lower pressure from friends, and healthier separation-individuation. Some differences were found regarding specific styles between the two samples. In addition, women scored lower than men in the reckless and careless style, and higher (in the Israeli sample) in the anxious as well as the patient and careful styles. Overall, similarities in the associations between the study variables in the samples exceed the differences, and the importance of examining variables on multi-levels when referring to young drivers' driving styles, is confirmed. The findings attest to the universal utility of the MDSI, together with the understanding that only a wider examination of personal and environmental contributors enables true insights into the complex behavior of driving among young drivers. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The drought risk of maize in the farming-pastoral ecotone in Northern China based on physical vulnerability assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zhiqiang; Jiang, Jingyi; Ma, Qing

2016-12-01

Climate change is affecting every aspect of human activities, especially the agriculture. In China, extreme drought events caused by climate change have posed a great threat to food safety. In this work we aimed to study the drought risk of maize in the farming-pastoral ecotone in Northern China based on physical vulnerability assessment. The physical vulnerability curve was constructed from the relationship between drought hazard intensity index and yield loss rate. The risk assessment of agricultural drought was conducted from the drought hazard intensity index and physical vulnerability curve. The probability distribution of drought hazard intensity index decreased from south-west to north-east and increased from south-east to north-west along the rainfall isoline. The physical vulnerability curve had a reduction effect in three parts of the farming-pastoral ecotone in Northern China, which helped to reduce drought hazard vulnerability on spring maize. The risk of yield loss ratio calculated based on physical vulnerability curve was lower compared with the drought hazard intensity index, which suggested that the capacity of spring maize to resist and adapt to drought is increasing. In conclusion, the farming-pastoral ecotone in Northern China is greatly sensitive to climate change and has a high probability of severe drought hazard. Risk assessment of physical vulnerability can help better understand the physical vulnerability to agricultural drought and can also promote measurements to adapt to climate change.

Comparative Study of DC and AC Microgrids in Commercial Buildings Across Different Climates and Operating Profiles: Preprint

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fregosi, D.; Ravula, S.; Brhlik, D.

2015-04-22

Bosch has developed and demonstrated a novel DC microgrid system designed to maximize utilization efficiency for locally generated photovoltaic energy while offering high reliability, safety, redundancy, and reduced cost compared to equivalent AC systems. Several demonstration projects validating the system feasibility and expected efficiency gains have been completed and additional ones are in progress. This work gives an overview of the Bosch DC microgrid system and presents key results from a large simulation study done to estimate the energy savings of the Bosch DC microgrid over conventional AC systems. The study examined the system performance in locations across the Unitedmore » States for several commercial building types and operating profiles and found that the Bosch DC microgrid uses generated PV energy 6%–8% more efficiently than traditional AC systems.« less

A Review of the Safety Climate Literature as it Relates to Naval Aviation

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

mines, the opposite effect also appears to hold true. Brown , Willis and Prussia (2000) found that safety hazards directly caused accidents and...low performers (Braithwait, 1985; DeMichiei, Langton, Bullock, & Wiles , 1982). High levels of management control over work organization and task...thesis, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA. Brown , K.A., Willis, P.G., & Prussia, G.E. (2000). Predicting safe employee behaviour in the steel

Should Educators Be "Wrapping School Playgrounds in Cotton Wool" to Encourage Physical Activity? Exploring Primary and Secondary Students' Voices from the School Playground

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hyndman, Brendon P.; Telford, Amanda

2015-01-01

Physical activity in school playgrounds has changed considerably over recent decades to reflect a climate of "surplus safety". A growing culture of surplus safety can be attributed to a desire of parents and teachers responsible for children to protect school students from danger. The aim of this research was to examine students'…

Dimensions of operational stress and forms of unacceptable risk taking with small arms and munitions.

PubMed

Ben-Shalom, Uzi

2015-01-01

Accidents with small arms and munitions during deployment is a significant safety concern for leaders and safety specialists in combat units. Operational stress may lead to forms of unacceptable risk taking with small arms that may underlie some of these accidents. The present research studied the correlation between two dimensions of operational stress, two forms of risk taking with small arms among combat unit soldiers and possible mediators. The dimensions of operational threat, negative affect and personality profile from the EPQ-R-S were predictors; "exaggerated preparedness" and "risky games with small arms and munitions" were dependent variables; safety climate of the platoon served as a mediator variable. The participants were 461 compulsory service combat soldiers in 31 companies. This field study was conducted during period of top security alert. The results reveal that perceived threat is indeed correlated with exaggerated operational preparedness whereas general emotional state was correlated with risky games with small arms. Safety climate mediated only the correlation between general emotional state and risky games with small arms and munitions. Preparedness and risky games were predicted by the interaction of Psychoticism and the Lie Scale from the EPQ-R-S. The results may enhance the efforts in reducing risk taking and prevention of accidents with small arms and munitions during and following deployment.

The Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee: a case study of meeting frequency, content, and outcomes before and after FDAAA.

PubMed

Morrato, Elaine H; Ling, Sarah B

2012-11-01

The Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act (FDAAA) of 2007 granted FDA-expanded drug safety authority. We hypothesized that meetings involving the FDA Drug Safety and Risk Management (DSaRM) Advisory Committee might serve as a barometer for the impact of FDAAA on drug safety regulatory decision making. We conducted a case study analysis of 42 DSaRM advisory committee meetings held between 2002 and 2011. Publicly available sources (FDA meeting minutes and materials, safety alerts, and drug manufacturer Web sites) were reviewed to describe and compare DSaRM meeting frequency, content and outcomes between the pre-FDAAA (2002-2007) and post-FDAAA (2008-2011) periods. DSaRM meeting frequency increased after FDAAA (from 2.7 to 6.5 meetings per year). DSaRM meetings were more likely to be held jointly with other drug advisory committees after FDAAA (from 68% to 92% of meetings). DSaRM members were invited participants in 35 additional meetings of other drug advisory committees (2007-2011). DSaRM meetings were more likely to review issues of approvability (eg, new drugs, new indications, and new product formulations) after FDAAA. FDA questions to the committee were more likely to request an explicit drug safety assessment after FDAAA (from 31% to 76% of meetings). Content analysis of meeting outcomes and subsequent FDA regulatory decisions did not suggest a more or less risk aversive climate after FDAAA. Increased DSaRM advisory committee activity indicates its advice was being sought more broadly for drug regulatory decision making and at earlier stages of drug development after FDAAA was enacted.

40% Whole-House Energy Savings in the Hot-Humid Climate

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

none,

This guide book is a resource to help builders design and construct highly energy-efficient homes, while addressing building durability, indoor air quality, and occupant health, safety, and comfort. With the measures described in this guide, builders in the hot-humid climate can build homes that achieve whole house energy savings of 40% over the Building America benchmark (the 1993 Model Energy Code) with no added overall costs for consumers.

40% Whole-House Energy Savings in the Mixed-Humid Climate

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Baechler, Michael C.; Gilbride, T. L.; Hefty, M. G.

2011-09-01

This guide book is a resource to help builders design and construct highly energy-efficient homes, while addressing building durability, indoor air quality, and occupant health, safety, and comfort. With the measures described in this guide, builders in the mixed-humid climate can build homes that achieve whole house energy savings of 40% over the Building America benchmark (the 1993 Model Energy Code) with no added overall costs for consumers.

Community-based Participatory Process – Climate Change and Health Adaptation Program for Northern First Nations and Inuit in Canada

PubMed Central

Peace, Diane McClymont; Myers, Erin

2012-01-01

Objectives Health Canada's Program for Climate Change and Health Adaptation in Northern First Nation and Inuit Communities is unique among Canadian federal programs in that it enables community-based participatory research by northern communities. Study design The program was designed to build capacity by funding communities to conduct their own research in cooperation with Aboriginal associations, academics, and governments; that way, communities could develop health-related adaptation plans and communication materials that would help in adaptation decision-making at the community, regional, national and circumpolar levels with respect to human health and a changing environment. Methods Community visits and workshops were held to familiarize northerners with the impacts of climate change on their health, as well as methods to develop research proposals and budgets to meet program requirements. Results Since the launch of the Climate Change and Health Adaptation Program in 2008, Health Canada has funded 36 community projects across Canada's North that focus on relevant health issues caused by climate change. In addition, the program supported capacity-building workshops for northerners, as well as a Pan-Arctic Results Workshop to bring communities together to showcase the results of their research. Results include: numerous films and photo-voice products that engage youth and elders and are available on the web; community-based ice monitoring, surveillance and communication networks; and information products on land, water and ice safety, drinking water, food security and safety, and traditional medicine. Conclusions Through these efforts, communities have increased their knowledge and understanding of the health effects related to climate change and have begun to develop local adaptation strategies. PMID:22584509

Operational responses to climate change impacts

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-01-01

Systems Operations and Management activities of transportation agencies-both state and localhave the objective of making the most effective use of the existing roadway capacity by : improving efficiency (throughput, speed, safety), minimizing the ser...