Never underestimate the power of saying sorry when mistakes are made, says Dr Stephanie Bown, MPS Director of Policy and Communications

Acknowledging mistakes and learning how to say “sorry” might seem to be straightforward enough for anyone but, for many doctors, they experience reticence and an element of uncertainty. This is one reason why MPS welcomes the National Patient Safety Agency’s (NPSA) relaunched guidance, Being Open, which contains some useful information for NHS trusts to help support their employees in such matters.

We have long supported and advised members to be open with patients about their mistakes; in many ways, the best justification for advocating a culture of openness is the most fundamental one – that admitting mistakes is morally and ethically the right thing to do. Evidence does suggest that this is all that patients want when they complain – to understand what happened and why.

A survey of our members found that doctors empathise with this. More than 90% of respondents felt that patients would be less likely to sue or complain, after being the victim of a mistake, if they received an apology and explanation. Barriers obviously remain, however: in the same survey, only two thirds of respondents felt that doctors are willing to be this open with patients, following an error.