The Safety Almanac
  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

The thin line marks today, 29 September 2026.

World Patient Safety Day 2026

2026

17 September 2026

Confirmed

Dates confirmed from the organiser’s announcement on 15 September 2026.

Organiser: World Health Organization (WHO)

Read the organiser’s pageAdd this date to your calendar

Theme

Safe care for noncommunicable diseases

The organiser’s announcement of this theme

What changed

The slogan for the year is "Safe care for life!". WHO held its global webinar on 9 September 2026 and again asked for landmarks to be lit orange on the day.

Why the day exists

Patient & food safety

more than 3 milliondeaths a year from unsafe care

Deaths from unsafe care worldwide — worldwide, 2023. Source: World Health Organization, Patient safety (fact sheet) (2023).

“Around 1 in every 10 patients is harmed in health care and more than 3 million deaths occur annually due to unsafe care.”

More figures for this hazard

How organisations mark it

  • Light a hospital, bridge or public building in orange on the evening of 17 September.
  • Work the year's WHO theme into safety huddles, grand rounds and induction sessions.
  • Invite patients and families to talk to staff about a time care went wrong and what changed afterwards.
  • Publish the unit's own harm figures for the year alongside the improvements made because of them.
  • Register your activity with WHO and use the campaign toolkit, posters and webinar.

Sources

  1. World Health Organization (WHO) — World Patient Safety Day 2026 — www.who.int, read 15 September 2026.
  2. World Patient Safety Day campaign — WHO — www.who.int, read 15 September 2026.
  3. World Patient Safety Day 2025 — WHO — www.who.int, read 15 September 2026.
  4. World Patient Safety Day campaign essentials — WHO — www.who.int, read 15 September 2026.
  5. World Patient Safety Day, 17 September 2025 — WHO event page — www.who.int, read 15 September 2026.