[LISTENING FOR SAFETY].

Abstract

Introduction: Medical errors pose a significant risk to public health. A mistake can often be prevented by timely access to the information that was unnoticed by the decision maker. Communication failure within the team is responsible for most errors that cause patient harm. This article reviews literature on challenges in reducing errors through a culture of listening within the team. A significant barrier to good team communication is fear of speaking up. According to surveys in the USA and Israel, nearly a third of the staff testified to fear reporting something that could endanger a patient. The difficulty of expressing oneself freely prevents the correction of failures and causes burnout at work. Improved communication is related to psychological safety in the organizational culture: the leader demonstrates humility, curiosity and gratitude towards the opinions of the team members and makes sure that no one gets hurt if they express an idea, question, concern or report a mistake. Training juniors and seniors by providing tools to improve communication within the team may be useful and can be facilitated through a simulation-based workshop. The challenge of listening to prevent disasters was learned in a tragic way at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and more recently, in Israel when repeated ominous warnings were ignored before the October 7th monstrous terror attack. Respectful listening is an essential key to cooperation and success in society in general and health organizations in particular.