@article {Birkelie002247, author = {G{\o}rill Helen Birkeli and Randi Ballangrud and Hilde Kristin Jacobsen and Ellen Catharina Tveter Deilkas and Anne Karin Lindahl}, title = {Green Cross method in a postanaesthesia care unit: a qualitative study of the healthcare professionals{\textquoteright} experiences after 3 years, including the COVID-19 pandemic period}, volume = {12}, number = {2}, elocation-id = {e002247}, year = {2023}, doi = {10.1136/bmjoq-2022-002247}, publisher = {BMJ Open Quality}, abstract = {Objectives Unsafe medical care causes morbidity and mortality among the hospital patients. In a postanaesthesia care unit (PACU), increasing patient safety is a joint effort between different professions. The Green Cross (GC) method is a user-friendly incident reporting method that incorporates daily safety briefings to support healthcare professionals in their daily patient safety work. Thus, this study aimed to describe healthcare professionals{\textquoteright} experiences with the GC method in a PACU setting 3 years after its implementation, including the period of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic{\textquoteright}s three waves.Design An inductive, descriptive qualitative study was conducted. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis.Setting The study was conducted at a PACU of a university hospital in South-Eastern Norway.Participants Five semistructured focus group interviews were conducted in March and April 2022. The informants (n=23) were PACU nurses (n=18) and collaborative healthcare professionals (n=5) including physicians, nurses and a pharmacist.Results The theme {\textquoteleft}still active, but in need of revitalisation{\textquoteright} was created, describing the healthcare professionals{\textquoteright} experiences with the GC method, 3 years post implementation. The following five categories were found: {\textquoteleft}continuing to facilitate open communication{\textquoteright}, {\textquoteleft}expressing a desire for more interprofessional collaboration regarding improvements{\textquoteright}, {\textquoteleft}increasing reluctance to report{\textquoteright}, {\textquoteleft}downscaling due to the pandemic{\textquoteright} and {\textquoteleft}expressing a desire to share more of what went well{\textquoteright}.Conclusions This study offers information regarding the healthcare professionals{\textquoteright} experiences with the GC method in a PACU setting; further, it deepens the understanding of the daily patient safety work using this incident reporting method.Data are available on reasonable request. All the data generated are available for sharing on request.}, URL = {https://bmjopenquality.bmj.com/content/12/2/e002247}, eprint = {https://bmjopenquality.bmj.com/content/12/2/e002247.full.pdf}, journal = {BMJ Open Quality} }