Patient safety is first and foremost the key value of healthcare. Strengthening patient safety requires a proactive patient safety culture. Reacting to incidents is not enough. Accountable and proactive leadership based on risk management, combined with an up-to-date situational picture, is essential. Operational requirements and systemic development alone have not succeeded in bringing about sufficient change in the desired direction. A radical transformation that includes requirements for behaviour is manifestly necessary. The required change is based on a new way of thinking: the art of patient safety. By following and exploring the path presented in this book, you can develop your patient safety skills to complement your knowledge and expertise.

Petri Pommelin, Licentiate of Science (Technology)

Petri has fifteen years experience of safety management in design, production, and use of medical devices. He has given lectures on regulatory requirements for medical devices at Tampere University. For the last fifteen years, he has been a leading patient safety specialist responsible for promoting risk management and safety culture at Tampere University Hospital.