Adverse incidents in gynaecology: anything for doctors?

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of incident reporting within the Department of Gynaecology at Trafford General Hospital.

Design/methodology/approach

A list of all reported clinical incidents in relation to gynaecology at the Trafford General Hospital over a period of two years (January 2005 to December 2006) was obtained. The complaints and claims related to gynaecology were also obtained for the same time period. All complaints and claims were correlated with the reported adverse incidents.

Findings

Of the reported 111 adverse incidents, none resulted in either complaint or claim. None of the complaints resulted in claims but there was no corresponding incident reporting. All the claims were directly related to surgical procedures but no incident reporting was done either. The nursing staff filled in all the 111 adverse incident forms.

Research limitations/implications

This study is only limited to adverse incidents in gynaecology over a short period of time (two years) at a District General Hospital.

Practical implications

This study demonstrates the need to stress the importance of incident reporting to the doctors. It is suggested that a session be dedicated to incident reporting as a part of in‐house training for medical staff of all grades.

Originality/value

This paper highlights the need to impress on the medical staff about the importance of adverse clinical incident reporting.

Citation

Basu, A., Theophilou, G. and Howell, R. (2008), "Adverse incidents in gynaecology: anything for doctors?", Clinical Governance: An International Journal, Vol. 13 No. 4, pp. 284-289. https://doi.org/10.1108/14777270810912978