Safety at the Sharp End

Rhona Flin (BSc, PhD Psychology) is Professor of Industrial Psychology at Aberdeen Business, Robert Gordon University and Emeritus Professor of Applied Psychology, University of Aberdeen, UK. She is a Chartered Psychologist, a Fellow of the British Psychological Society and of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Her research examines human performance in high-risk work settings (e.g., energy sector, healthcare, aviation, emergency services) focusing on non-technical skills, safety and emergency response. She led the Scottish Patient Safety Research Network, was a Trustee of the Clinical Human Factors Group and a member of the Military Aviation Safety Committee at the Ministry of Defence. She holds Fellowships (ad hom.) from the Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons Glasgow for her research on non-technical skills in surgeons and anaesthetists.

Tom Reader (MA, PhD Psychology) is an Associate Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science at the London School of Economics (LSE), UK. He directs the MSc in Organizational and Social Psychology at LSE, and also leads the Culture and Risk Research Unit. Tom's research investigates the cultural processes that underlie accidents and organizational failures, and he studies how organizations and teams operating in high-risk contexts develop capabilities for effectively managing hazards and disruptions. He has worked in many high-risk domains (e.g., healthcare, aviation, energy, finance), and his research has been published in leading scientific journals on psychology and risk: for example, Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Factors, Human Relations, Risk Analysis, Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology and Safety Science.

Paul O'Connor (BSc, MSc, MA, PhD) is a Personal Professor and Human Factors Psychologist in the School of Medicine at the University of Galway, Republic of Ireland. He is the Director of the Irish Centre for Applied Patient Safety and Simulation, and Director of the Postgraduate programme in Healthcare Simulation and Patient Safety. His research and teaching are concerned with improving human performance and safety in high-risk work environments. He has worked with a wide range of industries (e.g., civil aviation, energy sector) and the military (e.g., aviation, special operations). In recent years his research and teaching have focused on healthcare simulation and the human factors that contribute to patient safety and quality of care.