Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns 2023 Special Report
Learn how to identify and address patient safety concerns in your facilities
ECRI’s Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns 2023 list identifies potential sources of danger for patients and staff. We believe these risks require the greatest focus for the coming year, so we offer actionable recommendations for reducing these risks.
Overview
The 2023 edition of our list features many first-time topics, and emphasis is on potential risks that could have the biggest impact on patients. The number one topic on this year’s lists has been steadily growing and was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic: the pediatric mental health crisis.
The concern for pediatric mental health grew due to social media, limited access to pediatric behavioral health providers, drug and alcohol use, gun violence, and socioeconomic impacts. However, the problem has grown greatly. It is estimated among children aged 3 to 17 years, 9.2% experienced depression and 4.0% experienced anxiety in 2020.
In addition, several topics on this year's list reflect challenges that have resulted from the stresses associated with delivering care during a global pandemic and a challenging political environment.
- Physical and verbal violence against healthcare staff
- Clinician needs in times of uncertainty surrounding maternal-fetal medicine
- Impact on clinicians expected to work outside of their scope of practice and competencies