By Kamil, NIHR Newcastle PSRC Patient, Public Contributor
Lured by the promise of good food and new acquaintances, on Friday 17 October I made my way to Manchester for the NIHR SafetyNet Symposium – a gathering of clinicians, researchers and public contributors united by a single mission: tackling inequities in patient safety. Hosted by the Greater Manchester Patient Safety Research Collaboration (PSRC), the event brought together colleagues from the six PSRCs across England – Central London, Greater Manchester, Midlands, Newcastle, North West London and Yorkshire & Humber.
The day began with coffee and a bustling lobby filled with poster presentations. From the start, it was clear this wasn’t just an academic exercise. It was a collective effort to bridge the gap between policy, practice and lived experience.
One of the first things that struck me was the keynote by Dr Rosie Benneyworth from the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB). I hadn’t heard of HSSIB before and I found its mission fascinating. The organisation investigates systemic issues in healthcare topics such as sepsis, prison health and fatigue without focusing on blame. Instead, it looks for learning and improvement. This shift from a ‘who’s to blame’ culture to one of collective accountability resonated deeply with me.
A presentation on avoidable healthcare-associated harm in prisons was another eye-opener. While I wasn’t surprised to hear that prisoners and people experiencing homelessness suffer significantly worse health outcomes, it was sobering to see how these inequities manifest in daily practice e.g. medication shortages, missed appointments and institutional barriers that make basic care difficult. As someone finishing reading a book on health promotion, I could connect the dots between theory and reality: these are not abstract inequalities, they are lived injustices.
One reflection that stayed with me came from a discussion about adoption and breaking cycles of poverty and violence. Even in systems that often feel broken, there are ways to create safety and opportunity through compassion and action.
Several sessions focused on the intersection of communication and safety, including translation and interpreting services. This hit particularly close to home. As a qualified Polish interpreter, I know how vital accurate translation is for patient safety, yet the pay rates offered by NHS providers are often so low that professionals can’t afford to take the work. Hearing that language access was being discussed as a safety issue, not just a convenience, was both encouraging and frustrating. We have the knowledge; now the system needs the will to act.
The Patient Safety Healthcare Inequalities Reduction Framework, presented by Dr Hester Wain, outlined five principles for change: communication and information, training and resources, data, co-production, and research. I was especially struck by her emphasis that the experiences informing the framework are what make it powerful.
By the end of the day, after many conversations in the poster corridor and a moving talk on ethnic inequities in patient safety by Professor Dawn Edge, I left Manchester feeling both hopeful and challenged. The message was clear: health doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Tackling inequity requires empathy, collaboration, and, above all, a commitment to listen to those whose voices are too often ignored. For me, as a patient-cum-public contributor, the symposium was a reminder that my lived experience isn’t just welcome in research – it’s essential.