While there is a growing body of literature on patient safety, less of an emphasis has occurred in the long-term care (LTC) setting when compared to the acute care sector.  Recognizing the gap in our understanding of patient/resident safety issues in Long-Term Care, the Canadian Patient Safety Institute, Capital Health (Edmonton), and CapitalCare (Edmonton) collaborated to create a research and action agenda for improving safety in the Long-Term Care setting. 

This background paper describes the current state of the science on safety in Long-Term Care settings with an emphasis on safety research conducted in Canadian Long-Term Care.  In addition, key informant interviews were conducted with stakeholders from coast-to-coast to identify the factors, priorities, and gaps in improving safety in Canadian LTC settings.  The literature review and key informant interviews subsequently informed an invitational roundtable discussion held in Edmonton in May 2007. Participants rated staffing/human resources and communication as the top impediments to patient safety in Long-Term Care. 

This background paper is a critical step towards understanding the key issues and identifying research priorities for resident safety in Canadian Long-Term Care settings. A roadmap of the future research priorities and strategies for improvement which focus on both the critical need for applied health services research and action-oriented/demonstration projects is included.

Please feel free to contact Sandi Kossey, CPSI Project Manager at skossey@cpsi-icsp.ca, if you have any questions or need further information.