Purpose:
This practical two-day course develops the knowledge and skills needed to plan and facilitate PSIRF-aligned learning responses to patient safety incidents. It focuses on how to scope and structure proportionate responses, gather and synthesise information, apply Human Factors and systems thinking, and produce clear outputs that support learning and improvement. Participants practise learning response methods and build confidence in engaging compassionately and effectively with staff, patients, carers, and families.
Why this course matters to organisations
This course helps build practitioner capability for those responsible for leading or supporting learning responses. It strengthens the consistency and quality of incident response practice, improves the quality of outputs and actions, and supports a more confident and proportionate organisational approach to PSIRF.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
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Lead PSIRF-aligned learning responses using proportionate approaches
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Apply Human Factors and systems thinking to understand how system conditions shape risk
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Use PSIRF documentation and methods to plan, scope, and structure a response
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Facilitate swarms and AARs effectively
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Use systems tools to develop a coherent account of what happened and why
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Gather stronger evidence through effective engagement and interviewing
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Involve patients and families appropriately and compassionately
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Produce clearer, more useful outputs that support improvement
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Promote a just, learning-focused culture during and after patient safety events
Format and duration
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Duration: 2 days / 12 hours
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Delivery: Face-to-face or live online workshop with practical exercises and case studies
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CPD: Equivalent to 12 CPD points.
Tailoring and follow-up
Examples and activities can be adapted to the organisation’s incident profile, governance arrangements, and priority safety themes. Participants receive a certificate of completion and are offered a 30-minute post-course support call.
Intended audience
Designed for practitioners who will lead or support learning responses under PSIRF, including patient safety specialists, governance and risk leads, quality improvement leads, senior nurses, clinical leaders, and operational managers. The course is suitable for clinical and non-clinical staff and works best for participants who already have a basic grounding in Human Factors and systems thinking.
Topics covered
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Human Factors and systems thinking for incident response
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Work as done, Safety-II, and drift to failure
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The NHS patient safety landscape and the place of PSIRF within it
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PSIRF tools and documentation for scoping and planning responses
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Systems tools for learning, including SEIPS and timeline mapping
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Learning response methods, including swarms and After Action Reviews
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Information gathering, interviewing skills, and multidisciplinary approaches
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Involving patients, carers, and families, including Duty of Candour
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Writing clear, decision-useful outputs
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Additional analytical methods, including task analysis and human reliability analysis
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Just culture, psychological safety, and authority gradients
PSIRF - Systems Approach To Learning From Patient Safety Events (2-Day Course)
Practitioner course for staff who lead or support PSIRF learning responses and need practical tools, structure, and confidence.