Dear National Anaesthesiologist Societies Committee members,

As you all know, The European Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care (ESAIC) promotes the professional role of anaesthesiologists to improve perioperative patient outcomes by focusing on the quality of care and patient safety strategy.

During the past years, we have been working on educational programmes to enhance knowledge and training in Patient Safety. Our latest project is the “Safer Care to Save Lives” programme which consists of a comprehensive package of Patient Safety education for Anaesthesiologists, healthcare professionals, hospital managers and even patients. This package includes the Advanced Patient Safety Course (APSC). The first edition (Pilot course) will take place in Amsterdam on 19th & 20th September 2022.

It is designed as a blended on-demand/live course to teach key patient safety strategies in acute settings. We will use innovative teaching including interactive lectures and 360º videos of simulated scenarios which will be followed by debriefing. The participants will have the “student manual” available with all the information and a bibliography.

What’s more, this course will offer a European standard certification in Patient Safety, the ESAIC Advanced Patient Safety Certificate. We propose that bearers of this certificate be regarded as champions for patient safety within their own field and institutions.

The educational targets focus on the following goals:

1. Offer a fully integrated vision of patient safety culture during intensive care and anaesthesia which will be applicable to all acute settings.
2. Provide a framework to apply patient safety tools in different situations.
3. Train in the methodology of learning from errors, the importance of the critical incident reporting, system analysis, corrective action implementation and feedback.
4. Experience the value of human factors and practice resources to improve resolving crisis situations in acute settings as they happen.
5. Encourage attendees to advocate for patient safety in their work environments.
6. Help attendees to join patient safety related networks.

The APSC is designed to evolve in a cascade mode: every country could replicate the course adapted to their own language and will be delivered by trained trainers who will receive a specific training programme. The ESAIC will provide the Train the Trainers Course as well as a guidebook for the live program. This book will focus on the educational methodology and provide support for the sessions.