Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture in Slovenia: a psychometric evaluation

Abstract

Objective: To study the psychometric properties of a translated version of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (HSOPSC) in the Slovenian setting.

Design: A cross-sectional psychometric study including principal component and confirmatory factor analysis. The percentage of positive responses for the 12 dimensions (42 items) of patient safety culture and differences at unit and hospital-level were calculated.

Setting: Three acute general hospitals.

Participants: Census of clinical and non-clinical staff (n = 976).

Main outcome measures: Model fit, internal consistency and scale score correlations.

Results: Principal component analysis showed a 9-factor model with 39 items would be appropriate for a Slovene sample, but a Satorra-Bentler scaled χ(2) difference test demonstrated that the 12-factor model fitted Slovene data significantly better. Internal consistency was found to be at an acceptable level. Most of the relationships between patient safety culture dimensions were strong to moderate. The relationship between all 12 dimensions and the patient safety grade was negative. The unit-level dimensions of patient safety were perceived better than the dimensions at the hospital-level.

Conclusion: The original 12-factor model for the HSOPSC was a good fit for a translated version of the instrument for use in the Slovene setting.

Keywords: patient safety culture; psychometric analysis; survey.