March 2, 2023
Kayley Perfetto, Patient Safety Consultant at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), was recently recognized with a 2022 Patient Experience Scholar award by The Beryl Institute. The Scholar Program, now in its 13th year, supports professional doctoral students as they conduct research associated with patient experience and explore ideas and practices that will lead to positive health care outcomes.
Perfetto is a Ph.D. candidate in the Health Quality program at Queen’s University, with a focus on Patient Safety. The award from The Beryl Institute will help support her doctoral research, which is focused on understanding and improving the engagement of patients and care partners in patient safety.
“I’m very honoured to receive this award,” said Perfetto. “It feels good to have your work validated.”
The grant will help fund phase one of a three-phase study. Through interviews with care partners, this phase will explore and describe the impact that visitor restrictions implemented during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic had on the safety of inpatients in acute care settings.
Further phases will strengthen and validate an existing framework for patient and family engagement in patient safety for use within hospitals.
“There is a lack of literature about the experiences and perspectives of care partners on patient safety,” said Perfetto. “Without understanding this perspective, we aren’t able to make fully informed decisions about programs and policies. Through this study, we hope to better understand the role that care partners play in patient safety and how this was impacted when visitor restrictions were necessarily implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
In addition to the funding that will help support the unique work of Perfetto and her colleagues, her receipt of this award includes the publication of the results of phase one of her study in the Patient Experience Journal and a speaking engagement at The Beryl Institute’s annual Patient Experience Conference held in Dallas, Texas.