What’s New in HSOPS 2.0

Revision to the AHRQ Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture™

In October 2019, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) released a revised version of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture after 15 years.

AHRQ Comparative Databases have included over 2 million survey respondents across the United States. Internationally, the survey has been used across 93 countries in 40 different languages!

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What Changed on the Survey?

HSOPS 2.0

  • 40 total questions
  • Questions have a “N/A” | “Do not know” response option
  • 10 “Composites” (overall safety and teamwork across units dropped)
  • Extensive and clear options for role and medical domain

HSOPS 1.0

  • 51 total questions
  • Participants told to “skip” questions that don’t apply
  • 12 “Composites” (aspects of safety culture)
  • Basic options of participant role and medical domain

Question Changes

Changes to HSOPS 1.0 questions reflected in HSOPS 2.0

Changes to HSOPS 1.0 questions reflected in HSOPS 2.0

Why Does It Matter To My Health System?

The Good

  • Shorter survey!
  • Response option for “N/A”
  • More clinical areas and role types
  • Increased clarity of questions

The Bad

  • Direct comparisons between 1.0 and 2.0 are not possible
  • 1.0 benchmarks will no longer be updated after 2020
  • Comparative data from pilot study only includes 25 hospitals

The Unknown

  • AHRQ gives some guidance, but the best approach for transitioning between surveys is not yet clear
  • The organizational cost to re-orient leaders and staff to the new tool is unknown

What Do I Do Next?

01

Define Transition Timeline Soon

Immediately review the implications and options your organization has for transitioning from HSOPS 1.0 to HSOPS 2.0. After 2020, new benchmarks will not be available for HSOPS 1.0, so it is strongly advised to make the transition within the next 24 months.

02

Define Transition Approach

The best approach for transitioning from HSOPS 1.0 to HSOPS 2.0 will vary depending on your system size and historical data quality. They primary options include:

Option 1: Administer HSOPS 2.0 for the next survey cycle
Option 2: Administer HSOPS 1.0 for a final time and then transition to HSOPS 2.0 twelve months later
Option 3: Conduct a simultaneous administration of HSOPS 1.0 and HSOPS 2.0

03

Develop a Safety Culture Roadmap

Any new change brings an opportunity to do things better. Although HSOPS 1.0 enabled many organizations to become more aware of patient safety culture issues, most organizations failed to act on the information in a systematic way.

Transition from HSOPS 1.0 to 2.0

We can help you develop a seamless plan.