Examining the relationship between digital hospital level and patient safety culture: A study on healthcare workers

Objective This study aimed to examine the relationship between digital hospital level and patient safety culture among healthcare professionals and to determine whether digital hospital level is associated with patient safety culture in a hospital setting. Methods This cross-sectional descriptive and correlational study was conducted with healthcare professionals working in a university hospital in Turkey. Data were collected from 453 participants between September and November 2025 using a structured questionnaire. Digital hospital level was measured using the Digital Hospital Assessment Scale, which evaluates four dimensions: work and operations, management organization and cost, satisfaction, and patient safety. Patient safety culture was measured using the Turkish version of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture (TR–HSOPSC 2.0). Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analyses were performed. Results The findings showed that perceptions of digitalization and patient safety differed according to gender, education level, and professional role, with women reporting more positive views than men. A strong positive correlation was found between digital hospital level and patient safety culture (r = 0.812, p < 0.001), explaining 66% of the variance in digital hospital perceptions (Adjusted R 2 = 0.663). Conclusions The findings suggest that digitalization plays an important role in supporting safe healthcare services. Therefore, investments in digital technologies should be considered part of patient safety strategies. However, differences across professional groups indicate the need to improve the effective use of digital tools and supportive work environments. Future studies incorporating objective clinical data may further clarify the relationship between digitalization and patient safety. However, due to the cross-sectional design of the study, these findings should be interpreted as associations rather than causal relationships.