ATTITUDE AND PREFERENCE OF REHAB SCIENCES STUDENTS ON PATIENT SAFETY AND QUALITY IMPROVEMENT EDUCATION

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Patient safety has been neglected in the rehabilitation as per many of the studies, there is a surge demand to get acquainted with the knowledge of patient safety for quality and reliable care. This study aimed to explore the attitude and preferences of rehab sciences students about patient safety and quality improvement education to overcome the gaps in practice regarding patient safety. METHODOLOGY A cross-sectional survey was conducted on undergraduate medical students of physical and occupational therapy, on convenience sampling technique. Data was collected through WhatsApp and e-mail on self-administered questionnaire formulated on google document, based on attitude and preferences of patient safety and quality improvement education. RESULTS A total number of 134 responses received out of which 56.7% were occupational therapy (OT) and rest physical therapy (PT) student. 67.9% OT and 79.9% PT have rated their current knowledge of patient safety and quality improvement as an average. Moreover, students believe that 97.8% good communication, 98.5% patient participation and motivation and 96.3%multidisciplinary teamwork plays a vital role in reducing risk of error. Consecutively, 95.5% of students encourage the safety measurement and quality practice should be an objective of undergraduate curriculum. CONCLUSION The curriculum must include objectives that introduce clinical guidelines to devise a standardized protocol for safety and quality work concepts in order to reduce the risk of errors in practicing and promote patient safety.