Improving the quality and safety of surgical care: research protocol of EU project SAFEST

Complications or unintended healthcare outcomes (“healthcare adverse events”) affect 8-12% of patients admitted to hospitals in the European Union (EU), with surgical adverse events being the most common types reported. The SAFEST project aims to improve the quality and safety of perioperative care by establishing and implementing widely supported, evidence-based recommendations for safe perioperative care to reduce unintended perioperative care outcomes.
The SAFEST project (duration June 2022 through May 2026) is a mixed-methods implementation study to support the development and implementation of evidence-based recommendations for perioperative care through a Quality Improvement Learning Collaborative (QILC). The project is being conducted in 10 hospitals and related (primary care) facilities in 5 European countries. The level of adherence to the recommendations, as well as the incidence of surgical complications, patient-reported outcomes and experiences, contextual factors influencing the implementation of the recommendations and sustainability will be measured. The project consists of six phases: 1) Development and identification of evidence-based recommendations on safe perioperative care; 2) Self-assessment of these recommendations by participating hospitals; 3) Identification of priorities and action plans to improve care; 4) Implementation of a QILC strategy; 5) Evaluation of effectiveness; 6) Patient empowerment for patient safety. A call for participation from other hospitals will be issued toward the end of the project so that other hospitals can also conduct the self-assessment.
This is intended to promote evidence-based practice throughout the perioperative journey of adult patients undergoing surgery; the project will result in broad implementation of evidence-based practice in perioperative care, ranging from pre-hospital care to postoperative recovery at home or outpatient. The implementation of prioritized recommendations will involve several challenges. Within the QILC, these will be shared and can be learned from each other. Results will be disseminated in scientific publications and made available on an online platform.
This research is funded by the European Union's Horizon program for research and innovation (grant agreement no. 101057825). Dr. Hiske Calsbeek and dr. Yvette Emond are coauthors of this article.

Read the article here: Improving quality and patient safety in surgical care through standardisation and harmonisation of perioperative care (SAFEST project): A research protocol for a mixed methods study. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0304159