Error reporting in the healthcare

Errors are an inescapable part of medical activity. The only way organizations might be aware of errors and learn from them is through error reporting. Error reporting is a discretionary individual behavior that reflects the decision of individuals of communicating and disclosing errors to managers or supervisors, either verbally or through formal error reporting system. In this paper, we use the theoretical framework of behavioral reasoning theory to explore the reasoning processes underlying intentions to report errors in the workplace. We also investigate if the severity of error-related consequences might influence individuals’ formation of intentions. The findings of this study show that reasons, especially ‘reasons against’, are significantly associated with individuals’ intentions to report or not to report errors in the workplace over and above individuals’ attitudes, perceived control, and subjective norms (i.e. global motives). We discuss the implication of this study for theory and practice.