RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To identify potential shortcoming(s) in relevance to patient safety culture at dental clinics. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted from March to June 2016 at two clinics of a dental teaching college in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and comprised subjects who had either direct or indirect contact with patients in the dental clinics. The subjects were handed over a questionnaire based on the Patient Safety Culture Hospital Questionnaire. SPSS 21 was used for data analysis. RESULTS: Of the 149 subjects, 96(64.4%) were male, and 130(87%) were in direct contact with patients, while 19(13%) were in indirect contact. Overall, 52(35%) subjects stated that their unit did not have enough staff to handle the workload, and 71(47.7%) said that not encountering serious errors in their unit was pure luck. An encouraging finding was that 104(69.8%) subjects said their managers appreciated them when they followed the established patient safety protocol. Conclusion: There was a variation in the perception of patient safety culture among professionals.