Social risk, health inequity, and patient safety

Abstract

Social factors that affect health are called social determinants. Social determinants may also carry risk, known as social risk. Management and patient safety professionals understand health care and enterprise risk. Social risk may add a new dimension for some. Social risks are probably amenable to the strategies patient safety and risk management professionals already employ, such as enterprise risk management, a culture of safety, and just culture. A large body of evidence suggests that social risks, particularly literacy and discrimination, strongly affect patient safety and well-being. This paper examines the relationship between social determinants of health and social risks and considers how health care organizations might address literacy and discrimination from the perspective of patient safety and risk management.