Engaging patient and family advisory councils (PFACs) in patient safety in healthcare organisations: a rapid scoping review.

Abstract

Enhancing patient safety is a global priority and active involvement of patient and family advisory councils (PFACs) has been proposed as a key strategy in this endeavour. Preparing and supporting PFAC's activities in the field of patient safety is a crucial step in sustainably implementing patient engagement in healthcare organisations. However, to what extent and through which means remains unclear. Considering these shortcomings, we aimed to synthesise the current literature base, identify and map existing resources designed to educate and support PFACs in patient safety within healthcare organisations. We conducted a rapid scoping review. Drawing on predefined eligibility criteria, we reviewed peer-reviewed and grey literature on educational resources on patient-safety-related topics aimed at PFACs in healthcare organisations. We searched three databases (PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus) as well as websites of relevant stakeholders and institutions. Overall, we obtained 13 eligible sources. They featured resources ranging from reading materials to more intensive workshop sessions-combining active and passive learning approaches. Definition of key concepts and stakeholder roles were common topics in most sources. Yet, contents specific to patient safety showed considerable variability, likely due to context-specific approaches, local practices and lack of overall guidelines. Standardised resources tailored to PFACs' unique needs in patient safety were largely absent. This review highlights the limited availability of comprehensive, well-documented resources for PFACs. It further corroborates the need for systematic approaches to support patient engagement activities and meaningful involvement in patient safety. Our findings provide a first synthesis of the literature, inform future research as well as the development of respective patient engagement initiatives in patient safety. Moreover, they underscore the importance of developing standardised, yet adaptable resources to equip PFACs for their role in fostering safer healthcare systems. DRKS00034733.