Factors Associated with not Reporting Medical Errors from the Perspective of Nurses: A Case Study

Medical errors are problematic in the health system and can seriously affect patients' safety. The cause is not reporting, giving appropriate feedback, and taking action about them. This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with the lack of medical error reporting from the perspective of nurses at Shahid Motahari Hospital, in Tehran, Iran. 

This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in 2019 with the participation of 131 nurses working in different wards at Shahid Motahari Hospital in Tehran, Iran. The data were obtained using a questionnaire, whose validity was examined by ten nursing and health service management experts. Also, its reliability was confirmed (Cronbach's alpha = 0.83). Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS-19. 

The participants in the study had a mean age of 35 years; 77.9% were women and 22.1% were men. From the perspective, the main factors behind medical errors not being reported by nurses were the fear of reprimand by managers (legal factor), heavy workload (organizational culture factor), being charged (supervisory regulation factor), and recognizing error reporting as extra work (financial factor). 

Accurate human resource management planning to reduce nurses’ workload can be essential in promoting error reporting by creating an integrated system and organizing the process of error reporting and feedback.