Characteristics of adverse events recorded in various hospital wards: a case study of a level II referral specialist hospital

Abstract

CHARACTERISTICS OF ADVERSE EVENTS RECORDED IN VARIOUS HOSPITAL WARDS: A CASE STUDY OF A LEVEL II REFERRAL SPECIALIST HOSPITAL

Aim. The aim of the study was to assess the incidence of selected adverse events and their characteristics in hospital wards with varying specialties at a Level II referral hospital in Kraków.

Material and methods. The research was conducted at the Józef Dietl Specialist Hospital in Kraków on a group of 1272 patients who experienced an adverse event between 2013 and 2020. In order to answer the research questions, a retrospective analysis of the available medical records was performed in 2022 and statistical analyses were performed using the IBM SPSS Statistics package version 29.

Results. The most frequent adverse events included falls, pressure sores and patient absconding. There were no statistically signifi cant diff erences in the age of patients experiencing adverse events. Women were more likely to experience falls without injury and the formation of pressure sores, while men were more likely to abscond from hospital. Higher BMI was observed in patients experiencing falls without injury.

Conclusions. The risk of falls, both with and without injury, is a serious problem in hospitals. Although less common than falls, pressure sores are associated with longer hospitalisation and more frequently affect women. Seasonality and time of the day affect the type and frequency of adverse events. Differences between wards may indicate specific challenges related to the nature of patients.