The Importance of Human Factors in Preventing Harm and Protecting Workers

Join us at 17:30 (UTC+1) on World Patient Safety Day 2020 (17th September) for the second of ISQua’s two webinars on the theme of the day – Health Worker Safety: A Priority for Patient Safety. 

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Three of the leading world experts on Human Factors will share with you the importance of Human Factors to improve safety for healthcare professional and patients. 

This session will be moderated by Eric de Roodenbeke, CEO of the International Hospital Federation (IHF).

Presenters:

carayon pascalePascale Carayon PhD, is the Leon and Elizabeth Janssen Professor in Engineering, Director of the Center for Quality and Productivity Improvement, Founding Director of the Wisconsin Institute for Healthcare Systems. Engineering and leader of the interdisciplinary Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. She received her Engineer diploma from the Ecole Centrale de Paris, France, and her PhD in Industrial Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

In the last 20 years, her research has focused on patient safety and healthcare issues such as design of health information technologies. As an industrial and systems engineer, she is renowned for her groundbreaking contributions in modeling complex system interactions in healthcare processes that influence patient safety and other outcomes for patients and healthcare professionals.

She is a Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society and Fellow of the International Ergonomics Association. In 2016, she received the John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award for Individual Achievement. Since 2015, Becker’s Hospital Review has selected her yearly as one of 50 experts leading the field of patient safety.

albolino who 2Sara Albolino PHD EurErg is Director at the Centre for patient safety of the Tuscany Region where she has been working since 2004. She coordinates regional programs on training, patient safety practices, anticipation of risks. She is Chair of the WHO Collaborating Centre Collaborating Centre in Communication and Human Factor for Delivery of Safety and Quality Care. She is Secretary-General of the International Ergonomics Association. She received her PhD in Organization Sciences at the University of Milan and attended an advanced course on clinical risk management. She teaches patient safety and reliability of systems in many academic courses and masters in Italy and abroad. She is author of many publications in national and international scientific journal. She is member of the Italian Ergonomic Society where she covers the role of International Affair Secretary and  Secretary of the Italian Network for Patient Safety. She is member of the National Committee for Patient Safety where she represents Tuscany. She is an ISQua Expert, at the regional level she participates at the activities of many scientific bodies: Quality and Safety Regional Commission, Scientific Board for safety in Pediatrics, Scientific Board for Safety in Maternal and Neonatal area.  She is member of the editorial board for the IETI Transactions on Ergonomics and Safety (IETI TES) Journal, guest editor of Ergonomics, Internal and Emergency Medicine.

 Paul BowieDr Helen Vosper is a Senior Lecturer in Human Factors and Ergonomics at Robert Gordan University, Aberdeen, Scotland. A graduate of the Loughborough MSc Ergonomics (Human Factors) Programme, she has a broad interest across a range of sectors, especially aviation. In recent years, she has specialised in healthcare and healthcare education. Ergonomics/Human Factors has much to offer as healthcare curriculum content, facilitating learner development of practical competencies that can be applied in the workplace to optimise healthcare system outcomes, including staff and patient safety. Academic practice can also be viewed as a complex socio-technical system and Ergonomics/Human Factors principles can therefore underpin effective curriculum design, optimising outcomes such as student performance, wellbeing and satisfaction.

Dr Vosper is currently a Scientific Advisor to NHS Education for Scotland (NES) on patient safety and quality improvement research and educational development. Dr Vosper works in close collaboration with Dr Paul Bowie (Programme Director, Safety and Improvement at NHS Education for Scotland) as part of the national “Performing Well, Feeling Well” programme, the aim of which is to integrate HFE within NHS Scotland.

Suggested Reading:

The CIEHF Covid-19 response page: https://covid19.ergonomics.org.uk/

NHS Scotland’s evolving Human Factors Community of Practice/Online Resource: http://www.knowledge.scot.nhs.uk/hfe.aspx

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Elom Otchi


Elom is passionate about improving quality of care and patient safety outcomes.

In view of this, he has had the opportunity to work in various capacities with various organisations including AfIHQSA, WHO, UNICEF and others undertaking research, supporting the development of national quality policies and strategies, facilitating the establishment of quality governance systems across all the levels of the health sector and building capacity of national and sub-national quality leads/teams to institutionalize the practice of quality and patient safety across the continent.

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Stephen Taiye Balogun


Stephen is a Senior Programme Officer at the Institute of Human Virology in Nigeria as well as Country Representative for Health Information for All (HIFA).

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We are looking forward to working with both Stephen and our 2020 winner Rhoda Kalondu over the next year.

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Dr Rhoda Kalondu


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Dr Subhrojyoti Bhowmick


I am an MBBS graduate from Calcutta University with a Gold Medal in Gynecology & Obstetrics.

I have completed M.D in Pharmacology from IPGME& R, Kolkata and have over 12 years of experience in the field of Clinical Research, Pharmacovigilance and Medication management in Hospitals.

I have completed certification in Clinical Research Administration & Project Management from Stanford University, USA and in Patient Safety from Johns Hopkins University, USA.

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I sincerely believe that successful completion of this fellowship will help me evolve as a more confident Patient safety leader in India who in turn can provide significant inputs on policy changes through NABH for the Indian healthcare system.

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