Abstract: Patient safety is a global challenge that requires knowledge and
skills in multiple areas, including human factors and systems engineering. In
this chapter, numerous conceptual approaches and methods for analyzing,
preventing and mitigating medical errors are described. Given the complexity of
healthcare work systems and processes, we emphasize the need for increasing
partnerships between the health sciences and human factors and systems
engineering to improve patient safety. Those partnerships will be able to
develop and implement the system redesigns that are necessary to improve
healthcare work systems and processes for patient safety.