“All staff have been very helpful in giving me and other patients all the medications and personal care which hastened the healing process. This is a rare occurrence in most health facilities here. I think this was the main reason the caesarian operation was successful,” said Lina Suhai. The biggest hurdle that many patients face and that may not make them as lucky as Suhail, is the issue of inadequate sanitation and the inadequate quantity of pharmaceutical goods - such as medications and medical devices - to treat and manage complex or simplistic health conditions. According to Iman Kashmoula, the Patient Safety Unit Officer at Al-Karkh Baghdad Health Department, the patient safety program has been performed in 13 hospitals in Iraq since 2018, concentrating largely on stopping medical errors and adverse events that patients are exposed to before they happen. Although health care providers in Iraq are getting enormous assistance from the health authorities to diminish the burden of injury caused to patients as a consequence of medication mistakes, healthcare-associated diseases, unsafe surgical care methods, and unsafe injections practices in health care settings, the disruption of the health system in country over the last few years has left it ill-equipped. Other harm that is likely to affect patients includes diagnostic errors, unsafe transfusion practices, radiation errors, sepsis, and venous thromboembolism. Regionally, data has shown that up to 18% of hospital admissions are associated with unfavorable events, 80% of which are preventable. Patients may be at risk of injury if the care they receive is not adequate, whether that is because it is delayed, ineffective, inequitable, of poor condition, not based on the most advanced data or represents an economic hardship on the patient and their relatives. Globally, WHO is prioritizing patient safety as a worldwide health priority and inspiring patients, health care workers, policy-makers and health care industry to “ speak up for patient safety”. Important factors of patient safety policies suggested by WHO are clear procedures, safety leadership, and data to spur safety reforms, experienced health care specialists and effective engagement of patients in their charge. Today, WHO and the Ministry of Health of Iraq entered the global drive to begin World Patient Safety Day under the theme, “Speak Up for Patient Safety.” Through this crusade, WHO and the Ministry assembled patients, their spouses and children, health workers, policy-makers, academicians, researchers, safety expert networks and the healthcare industry to speak up. They did this by visiting and listening to the views of victims in Al-Karkh Maternity Hospital and by administering a patient safety conference in the corresponding clinic. In the afternoon, a press conference was held in the National Museum in Baghdad to increase public perception of the value of patient safety. In the afternoon, the city’s sky was lit in orange to celebrate the meaning of the day.

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22 September 2019 – Lina Suhail had just undergone her third caesarian section in Al-Karkh Hospital when WHO launched its first World Patient Safety Day. Unlike other patients, Suhail was happy with the services that she received from this hospital. “All staff have been very helpful in giving me and other patients all the medications and personal care which hastened the healing process. This is a rare occurrence in most health facilities here. I think this was the main reason the caesarian operation was successful,” said Lina Suhai.

“The biggest challenge that many patients face and that may not make them as lucky as I am, is the issue of poor hygiene and the inadequate supply of medical products - such as medicines and medical equipment - to treat and manage complicated or simple health conditions,” added Suhail.

According to Iman Kashmoula, the Patient Safety Unit Officer at Al-Karkh Baghdad Health Department, the patient safety programme has been implemented in 13 hospitals in Iraq since 2018, focusing mainly on preventing medical errors and adverse events that patients are exposed to.

Read the source article at ReliefWeb