Patients’ experiences of safety in a hospital learning department: A qualitative study

Objectives: This study aimed to explore experiences of the safety of hospital-admitted patients in learning departments where students and nurses provide care together.

Methods: This general qualitative explorative study was conducted in a University Medical Center in the Netherlands. Patients admitted to a learning department were purposefully sampled. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted. Data was collected between February and April 2021. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data.

Results: Five main themes emerged after interviewing patients (n = 13): having accountable nurses, trust through autonomy and support, taking time to communicate, a safe learning environment with backup, and being unaware of being in a learning department. All patients indicated that they feel safe in a learning department.

Conclusion: Patients felt safe being admitted to a learning department and experienced no differences in feeling safe between nurses and students. Patients can feel safer in the department if they are informed in advance that they have been admitted to a learning department, so they are aware of the presence of students.