SynthesisBMC health services research2012
What is preventable harm in healthcare? A systematic review of definitions.
Synthesis in BMC health services research, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- How safe is prehospital care? A systematic review.International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care · 2021Pooled it
- A Systematic Review of the Legal Considerations Surrounding Medicines Management.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2021Pooled it
- Preventable medication harm across health care settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC medicine · 2020Pooled it
- Prevalence, severity, and nature of preventable patient harm across medical care settings: systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2019Pooled it
- Trial
- Development and evaluation of a German Paediatric Trigger Tool (PAED-TT-GER) for detecting adverse events in hospitalized children.European journal of pediatrics · 2026Article
- Deep Learning for Early Prediction of Adverse Events in Intensive Care Units Using Electronic Health Records: A Methodological Review.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2026Review
- Opioid Room of Horrors: a simulation approach to strengthen drug administration safety.BMJ open quality · 2025Article
- Invisible harm in patient safety: a framework and definition for preventable psychological harm in cancer care.BMJ open quality · 2025Article
- The problem with the existing reporting standards for adverse event and medical error research.BMJ quality & safety · 2025Article
- An Estimate of Preventable Harms Associated With Screening Colonoscopy Overuse in the U.S.AJPM focus · 2025Article
- Profession-based manual therapy nomenclature: exploring history, limitations, and opportunities.The Journal of manual & manipulative therapy · 2024Article
- What is manipulation? A new definition.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2023Review
- Patient Safety and the Question of Dignitary Harms.The Journal of medicine and philosophy · 2023Article
- 'Paper care not patient care': Nurse and patient experiences of comprehensive risk assessment and care plan documentation in hospital.Journal of clinical nursing · 2023Article
- Patient Safety and the COVID-19 Pandemic in Germany: A Repeated Population-Based Cross-Sectional Survey.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Observational
- Family Caregivers' Experiences of Preventing Harm to Older People during Hospitalization: A Phenomenographic Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Barriers and enablers to nurses' use of harm prevention strategies for older patients in hospital: A cross-sectional survey.Journal of advanced nursing · 2022Article
- Development and evaluation of a structured guide to assess the preventability of hospital-onset bacteremia and fungemia.Infection control and hospital epidemiology · 2022Article
- Two-Year Profile of Preventable Errors in Hospital-Based Neurology.Neurology. Clinical practice · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMitigating or reducing the risk of harm associated with the delivery of healthcare is a policy priority. While the risk of harm can be reduced in some instances (i.e. preventable), what constitutes preventable harm remains unclear. A standardized and clear definition of preventable harm is the first step towards safer and more efficient healthcare delivery system. We aimed to summarize the definitions of preventable harm and its conceptualization in healthcare.
methodsWe conducted a comprehensive electronic search of relevant databases from January 2001 to June 2011 for publications that reported a definition of preventable harm. Only English language publications were included. Definitions were coded for common concepts and themes. We included any study type, both original studies and reviews. Two reviewers screened the references for eligibility and 28% (127/460) were finally included. Data collected from studies included study type, description of the study population and setting, and data corresponding to the outcome of interest. Three reviewers extracted the data. The level of agreement between the reviewers was calculated.
resultsOne hundred and twenty seven studies were eligible. The three most prevalent preventable harms in the included studies were: medication adverse events (33/127 studies, 26%), central line infections (7/127, 6%) and venous thromboembolism (5/127, 4%). Seven themes or definitions for preventable harm were encountered. The top three were: presence of an identifiable modifiable cause (58/132 definitions, 44%), reasonable adaptation to a process will prevent future recurrence (30/132, 23%), adherence to guidelines (22/132, 16%). Data on the validity or operational characteristic (e.g., accuracy, reproducibility) of definitions were limited.
conclusionsThere is limited empirical evidence of the validity and reliability of the available definitions of preventable harm, such that no single one is supported by high quality evidence. The most common definition is "presence of an identifiable, modifiable cause of harm".
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.