International Journal for Quality in Health Care Advance Access originally published online on April 14, 2005
International Journal for Quality in Health Care 2005 17(4):363-367; doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzi041
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The DNA damage response and patient safety: engaging our molecular biology-oriented colleagues
1 Medical Management Center, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden, 2 Division of Clinical and Molecular Endocrinology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and 2VA HSR&D Center for Quality Improvement Research, Louis Stokes Cleveland, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
The imperative to improve patient safety is clear. Biomedical scientists, who account for a large proportion of medical school faculty, and clinicians tend to speak different languages. Biological systems are remarkable for their high robustness, flexibility, and efficiency. Biomedical scientists possess a profound understanding of the complex mechanisms that govern organisms. Their insights may inform the design of safer health care systems. We propose a model to assist in bi-directional communication between these disciplines. We use the principles and mechanisms of the DNA damage response to describe the central concepts of safety science and discuss similarities and differences between the systems of DNA repair and organizational approaches to safety in health care. We suggest that such biomedical scientists can and should be engaged in the effort to bring education about patient safety management into the medical school curriculum and to make patient care safer.
Keywords: complexity, DNA repair, medical education, patient safety, systems thinking
Address reprint requests to David C. Aron, Education Office 14(W), Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 10701 East Blvd, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA. E-mail: david.aron{at}med.va.gov
Accepted for publication March 6, 2005.