Initiatives for Promoting Patient Safety in Obstetric Care Starting from Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO™) in Japan

Abstract

The simulation course in obstetric emergencies aims not only to improve knowledge and skills but also to enhance team approaches and patient safety. Particularly for enhancing team approaches and patient safety, it is effective for team members, regardless of their professional roles, to come together to share learning opportunities that can be applied to real clinical practice. The concept of “To Err is Human,” acknowledging the inherent limitations of human performance, underscores the importance of patient safety and has driven the adoption of interdisciplinary approaches to mitigate these limitations, establishing patient safety as a critical academic field. Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) has swiftly adopted this concept, providing essential simulation-based training to strengthen medical teams dedicated to ensuring safe childbirth. The ALSO provider certification signifies that an individual has successfully completed a comprehensive educational program qualifying them not only as “a specialist with the requisite knowledge and skills in obstetric care” but also as “a member of a collective of specialists capable of providing safe maternal and child healthcare.” The dissemination of simulation-based education, such as ALSO and BLSO, along with the related continuous medical education focused on training obstetricians and midwives as instructors, is an important initiative for “distribution of healthcare” through Japan's education in patient safety.