Patient safety incidents and near misses are a reality in patient care. “With people, there’s always the possibility of human error. But we can learn from our mistakes”, says Professor of Nursing Science Marja Härkänen.
Marja Härkänen was appointed Professor of the Department of Nursing Science from the beginning of June. For more than a decade now, she has researched patient safety themes at the University of Eastern Finland while a multidisciplinary and international cooperation network has grown around the topic.
Härkänen also has a secondary position as a research professor at the Research Centre for Nursing Science and Social and Health Management in the Wellbeing Services County of North Savo.
“It makes it possible to bring research even closer to practical work.”
Härkänen’s research topics include the factors that contribute to the incidents in medical treatment and how they could be prevented.
“Nowadays, the perspective is shifting more and more towards the experiences of professionals involved in incidents and the support they need.”
Cannot afford to lose a single professional
One way to access information on incidents is from the reporting systems used by health care organisations.
“Still, it’s difficult to estimate their numbers. The rate of reporting may also grow as the safety culture develops, even if the number of incidents is not growing.”
The background factors cited in incident reports are often problems with the flow of information, but also having to rush, and having too much work and too little skilled personnel.
“For example, routine examinations related to administering medicines may get overlooked in a hurry.”
According to Härkänen, reporting is useful when reports are processed without delay, openly and without blame, and lessons are learned from them.
“It could entail very practical things, such as clearer instructions or changing the colour of morning medicine cups to the same colour in different wards.”
In a project funded by the Research Council of Finland, Härkänen’s group is researching the utilisation of reporting systems with the help of artificial intelligence. An AI-based warning system developed in cooperation with companies would make it possible to respond to incidents in real time. One resource used in the development is the world’s largest incident dataset from the United Kingdom, where Härkänen holds the post of visiting researcher at King’s College London.
Health care services have started to become aware of the impacts that patient safety incidents have even on the health care professionals involved. The mental stress caused by an error may lead to absences and thoughts of resigning, especially among people who feel that they are not supported by their work community.
“Support programmes do exist, but they should be made more accessible to everyone. Even a near miss situation can give you a scare that weighs on you for years. We cannot afford to lose even a single professional to something like this,” says Härkänen.
In the wellbeing services county, Härkänen is leading two new research projects that examine experiences related to nurses’ limited right to prescribe medicines and patient safety incidents related to childbirth, which is a topic that has seen little research so far.
Established a couple of years ago, the Research Centre for Nursing Science and Social and Health Management contributes to increased cooperation between the wellbeing services county and the university.
“One of our methods is a writing clinic that we want to use to lower the threshold between practical work and scientific writing.”
“A new addition this autumn is the research club, which we are using to put researched information into practice more effectively. The Research Centre also actively seeks research funding and engages in extensive cooperation within the wellbeing services county and the entire collaborative area.”
Practical nursing work is what resulted in Härkänen’s personal interest in developing pharmaceutical and patient safety.
“I’m grateful that the university currently has plenty of education in this area, and I’ve been able to do my part to influence it. In the future, there will be a specialisation option with a strong focus on patient safety in the master’s degree studies in nursing science, and many health care professionals will be taking these studies with us through Open University.”
Marja Härkänen
Professor of Nursing Science, University of Eastern Finland, 1 June 2025 –
- M.H.Sc. 2011, University of Eastern Finland
- DHSc 2015, University of Eastern Finland
- Docent in Medication Safety 2020, University of Helsinki
- Docent of Nursing Science 2021, University of Eastern Finland
Key positions
- Chief Nursing Officer / Chief Specialist 2024– and Research Professor 1 June 2025–, Wellbeing Services County of North Savo, Research Centre for Nursing Science and Social and Health Management
- Academy Research Fellow 2022–2027, University of Eastern Finland, Department of Nursing Science
- Associate Professor (tenure track) 2021–2025, University of Eastern Finland, Department of Nursing Science
- Postdoctoral Researcher 2015–2017, Postdoctoral Researcher of the Research Council of Finland 2017–2020 and University Researcher 2020–2021, University of Eastern Finland, Department of Nursing Science
- Coordinator of the University of Eastern Finland’s Doctoral Programme in Health Sciences 2017–2021 and Deputy Director 2022–
- Member of the management group of the University of Eastern Finland’s Research Community on Effectiveness of Social and Health Services, 2024–
- Visiting researcher, King's College London, 2016–
For further information, please contact:
Professor Marja Härkänen, https://uefconnect.uef.fi/marja.harkanen/
Photos for the media available on website.
