Validation in the Greek Language of the Patients' Perception of the Surgical Safety Questionnaire

Introduction Adverse events in the operating room are considered unintended injuries or harm caused by healthcare rather than the patient's disease, leading to death, disability, or prolonged hospital stays. Methods A cross-sectional design was conducted following the random sampling method, on 200 surgical patients. A self-completed questionnaire was used, translated, and adapted into the Greek language. Results Most of the sample (57%) was male. The mean age was 67 years, and 52% were elementary school graduates. Upon analysis, significant correlations were observed between the two-administration (p<0.001) facts (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.567), which reveal that the scale is stable through time. In addition, Cronbach's alpha had a value of 0.824 suggesting good internal consistency of the scale. Regarding the subscale, the first factor "safety regarding surgical procedure" was found 0.847, the second factor "effective communication and understanding" was 0.792, and finally the third factor "emotional security" was 0.506. A statistically significant difference found between the dimensions of safety in the operating room and the age of the patients was in the factor of emotional security, revealing that patients aged more than 70 were feeling more secure compared to younger patients (198) = 2.374, p=0.019. Conclusions The internal consistency of the Patients' Perspectives of Surgical Safety Scale (PPSS), weighted in a sample of the Greek population, is deemed satisfactory. The safety perceptions of surgical patients are at high levels.