DRF Luftrettung has once again been awarded a prize for an innovative system for patient safety. On 18 September, Florian Kramer, Head of Safety Management at DRF Luftrettung, accepted the German Prize for Patient Safety from the action alliance of the same name in Berlin. The non-profit organization receives the 2nd place award for its Event Risk Classification (ERC). DRF Luftrettung has been successfully using the ERC in clinical risk management for five years now for consistent and efficient risk assessment.

The Event Risk Classification (ERC), which has been used in DRF Luftrettung for five years now, originally comes from aviation (ARMS model). It replaces the classic assessment of the probability of occurrence with an analysis of the effectiveness of safety barriers. This allows critical events to be assessed more realistically and the result to be used in a more targeted manner. The systematic recording of events in the ERC benefits both individuals and the entire organization learns from them.

What had already proven itself in flight operations was now transferred to medicine by DRF Luftrettung. The ERC now forms an important basis for analysing adverse events objectively and realistically. The effectiveness of the safety barriers is assessed on the basis of defined rules. It leads to concrete recommendations for action depending on the risk index (e.g. examination, root cause analysis, statistical recording). This results in comprehensible risk indices taking into account the safety culture.

Indispensable tool in clinical risk management

A significant advantage of the ERC is that the risk index determined corresponds to the actual risk at the time of the event. The probability of occurrence is still considered – but no longer solely related to the individual case, but with a broader perspective. On this basis, goal-oriented measures can be developed to improve patient safety.

The ERC is part of a whole system of different building blocks that contribute to the continuous improvement of patient safety at DRF Luftrettung. Among other things, the non-profit organization is a member of the Patient Safety Action Alliance and is committed to the further development of prehospital diagnostics. In addition, DRF Luftrettung uses data-based risk management. The goal: to detect critical events and near misses at a very early stage and to learn from them before a patient is harmed. This approach was awarded the HRO Award in 2024.

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