Engaging with PSIRF: A Strategic Opportunity for Health Librarians

BySusan Smith

The Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) is reshaping how the NHS approaches patient safety. As health librarians, we have a unique opportunity to align our services with this transformative agenda—supporting learning, improving systems, and ultimately enhancing patient care.

Following a recent LIHNN session with Karen Luscombe, Associate Medical Director for Patient Safety at Mid Cheshire Hospitals, here’s a summary of key insights and practical ways library and knowledge services (LKS) can engage with PSIRF.

What is PSIRF?

PSIRF is a national NHS England framework that moves away from blame and towards learning and system improvement. It’s grounded in safety science, human factors, and compassionate engagement with both staff and patients.

Core Principles:

  • Compassionate Engagement – with staff and families.
  • Systems Thinking – understanding incidents in context.
  • Proportionate Response – focusing on high-learning potential.
  • Supportive Oversight – working collaboratively with ICBs.

 Watch the PSIRF overview video

How PSIRF Works in Practice

At Mid Cheshire Hospitals, PSIRF is embedded through:

  • Daily triage meetings and weekly safety summits
  • A Sustained Learning Group revisits past incidents to see how learning has embedded and if there are any unintended consequences of the change.
  • Use of systems-based analysis and the hierarchy of controls to guide action planning

A powerful example, “Beryl’s Story,” illustrated how PSIRF tools supported a compassionate, system-focused investigation into a patient death—engaging the family and supporting staff through a Just Culture approach.

Where Do Librarians Fit In?

There is a good chance that knowledge and library services are already contributing in meaningful ways, but this relationship could be formalised and developed:

  • Evidence Summaries: Supporting local policy and clinical decisions.
  • Current Awareness:  Providing up to date evidence for key topics.
  • SOP Redesign: At Mid Cheshire the knowledge & library service is helping to transforming procedures into visual, intuitive format to make them more accessible to busy clinicians on the go.

Recommended Developments

Here are some practical ways to align your library service with PSIRF:

1. Get Involved in Priority-Setting

  • Connect with PSIRF or governance leads (e.g., Associate Medical Directors, Directors of Nursing).
  • Offer to attend planning meetings to align evidence services with PSIRF themes.

2. Mobilise Knowledge

  • Use platforms like KnowledgeShare to disseminate learning and current awareness.
  • Track national trends and contribute to sustained learning.

3. Collaborate Nationally

  • Work with other trusts to produce evidence summaries on shared safety themes.
  • Share learning through communities of practice spread learning beyond local Integrated Care Boards.

4. Guide Safe Use of AI

  • Educate staff on appropriate AI tools for clinical evidence (e.g., Trip, Consensus).
  • Caution against using general tools like ChatGPT for clinical decision-making.
  • Falls and pressure ulcers

Reflections from the Session

Participants appreciated hearing a clinician’s perspective and saw real potential for libraries to contribute more strategically. However, some noted that awareness of what LKS can offer remains limited, highlighting the need for proactive engagement and advocacy.

PSIRF is not just a clinical framework—it’s a cultural shift. Health librarians are well-positioned to support this transformation by connecting people with knowledge, improving access to evidence, and helping embed learning into everyday practice.

Let’s make sure we’re at the table.

Susan Smith, Knowledge & Library Manager, Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Copilot – Create a professional and friendly blog post tailored for health librarians, based on the detailed summary of the webinar transactions and evaluation.

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