Healthcare practitioners’ attitudes toward patient safety in hospital settings in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Purpose Patient safety focuses on minimizing risks that might occur to patients during provision of healthcare. The purpose of this study was to explore healthcare practitioners’ attitudes towards patient safety inside different hospital settings in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Design/methodology/approach A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of healthcare practitioners in main hospitals in Jeddah. Two main hospitals (one governmental and one private) were selected from each region of Jeddah (east, west, north and south), with a total number of eight out of thirty hospitals. Data were collected through the Attitudes to Patient Safety Questionnaire III that was distributed online. The questionnaire used a 5-point scale. Descriptive statistics were used. Comparisons were made by independent t -test and ANOVA. The statistical significance level was set at p < 0.05. Findings The study included 341 healthcare practitioners of different sexes and specialties in eight major governmental and private hospitals in Jeddah. “Working hours as error cause” subscale had the highest mean score (4.03 ± 0.89), while “Professional incompetence as error cause” had the lowest mean score (3.49 ± 0.97). The total questionnaire had a moderate average score (3.74 ± 0.63). Weak correlations between the average score of the questionnaire and sex, occupation and workplace were found (−0.119, −0.018 and −0.088, respectively). Practical implications Hospitals need to develop targeted interventions, including continuing professional development programs, to enhance patient safety culture and practices. Moreover, patient safety training is required at the undergraduate education level, which necessitates health professions education institutions to give more attention to patient safety education in their curricula. Originality/value The study contributed to the existing literature on patient safety culture in hospital settings in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The insights generated by the study can inform targeted interventions to enhance patient safety culture in hospitals and improve patient outcomes.