A Blueprint for Action

Patient Safety Learning’s latest report is now available.

Patient Safety Learning’s report, A Blueprint for Action, is available to download.

A Blueprint for Action sets out the action needed to progress towards the patient-safe future. Underpinned by systemic analysis and evidence, it proposes practical actions to address the foundations of safer care for patients.

These foundations are:

  • Shared learning
  • Professionalising patient safety
  • Leadership
  • Patient engagement
  • Data and insight
  • Culture

Read more on our six foundations.

Many of the actions A Blueprint for Action describes are already underway. For example, we launched our knowledge-sharing platform, the hub, in October 2019.

Other actions need work across and between organisations, by individual organisations, by teams and by individuals. Anyone with an interest in patient safety can contribute.

If you would like to be part of this work, please contact us.

Download A Blueprint for Action in full, or you can download the Executive Summary.

In addition, we have created a visual summary of A Blueprint for Action, primarily for print purposes but also available to download.

Supporting Statements

A Blueprint for Action is being widely welcomed across the healthcare system and supportive statements include:

Dr Ted Baker, Chief Inspector of Hospitals, Care Quality Commission:
“In our recent report “Opening the Door to Change” I called for a new era of leadership, focused on safety culture, engaging staff and involving patients. I strongly welcome “A Blueprint for Action” as it lays out how everyone involved in healthcare, including patients, can work together to bring about the change in culture that is needed to make our healthcare as safe as it can be.”

The Department of Health and Social Care:
“The Secretary of State confirmed his commitment to the NHS being the safest healthcare system in the world when he addressed Patient Safety Learning's conference last year. Ministers are grateful for the interest of a wide range of partners and agencies, including Patient Safety Learning, in reducing patient harm across the NHS.”

Tom Kark QC, author of the 2019 Kark Review of the Fit and Proper Person Test:
“The Patient Safety Learning Blueprint for Action is an important paper and could make a significant change to patient safety if… its proposals are put into effect."

Professor Albert Wu of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg Center for Public Health:
“Knowledge and know-how are crucial to improving the safety of health care. This first entails awareness, and then actual learning, on the part of clinicians, leaders and managers, and patient and families. Patient Safety Learning is dedicated to engaging the hearts and minds of all of these essential players. I foresee that they will play an important role in helping us learn together. Their publication, A Blueprint for Action, lays out a way forward.”

A platform for anyone with an interest in patient safety to share and learn from one another. Learn more.

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