Dr. Alireza Askari, Acting Director of the Center for Hospital Management and Clinical Excellence
Every year, September 17 is observed as World Patient Safety Day—an opportunity to draw global attention to the importance of safe care within health systems. This year, the World Health Organization (WHO) has chosen the theme “Safe Care for Every Newborn and Child”, highlighting one of the most vital and sensitive populations in healthcare.
No area of the health system requires as much precision, expertise, and safety as the care of newborns and children. Due to their unique physiology, specific needs, and high dependency on caregivers, they are more vulnerable than others to harm caused by medical errors or unsafe services. Because harm in this group can have lifelong or even fatal consequences, enhancing safety in their care is not merely a choice—it is an ethical, professional, and social imperative.
For World Patient Safety Day 2025, WHO has outlined four key objectives:
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Raising public and professional awareness about safety risks in child-centered care;
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Mobilizing policymakers, healthcare institutions, academia, and civil society to design sustainable strategies for safe care;
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Empowering parents, caregivers, and even children themselves to take an active role in the care process;
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Supporting knowledge generation and research related to child safety in health systems.
This year’s slogan, “Patient Safety Right from the Start!”, rightly emphasizes that investing in safety from birth not only lays the foundation for individual health but also underpins sustainable development and quality of life in every society.
In our country as well, this theme can serve as a guide for critically re-examining some existing approaches. It is time for hospitals, policymakers, medical universities, and professional media outlets to move beyond ceremonial observances of health-related days and instead use such occasions to redefine their responsibilities toward the next generation.
Activities such as hospital safety leadership rounds, recognition of safety champions, reviewing error-reporting pathways, and broad media engagement to raise public awareness are just a few of the steps that can transform this day from a “calendar event” into a true “system milestone.”
Ultimately, the most important message of World Patient Safety Day 2025 may be this: If we fail to take safe care of children seriously, we endanger not only them but also the future health of our entire society.