#notjusta
Because every voice matters in safer surgery
AfPP’s #notjusta campaign was inspired by Beth’s story.
Beth was a little girl undergoing what should have been a routine operation. She should have returned safely to her family. Instead, she died in theatre. Her story raises a vital question:
When someone in the perioperative team recognises a risk to a patient, do they feel able to speak up, and when they do, are they listened to?
Across the UK, perioperative professionals tell us that hierarchy, fear of repercussions, and a lack of psychological safety can still prevent concerns from being raised or acted upon. Yet patient safety depends on every member of the team being able to challenge, question, and be heard.
The #notjusta campaign challenges the belief that anyone in theatre is “just” a role.
Every nurse, ODP, healthcare assistant, anaesthetist, doctor, student, and porter brings expertise, judgement, and a unique perspective that helps protect patients.
Discover the full story behind the campaign, why it matters, and how you can help create safer surgery for every patient here.
Built around the pillars of Awareness, Advocacy and Education, the campaign aims to create a culture where patient safety always comes before hierarchy, and where every voice has the power to make a difference:
- Awareness – shining a light on the cultural and human factors that influence safety in theatre.
- Advocacy – championing workplaces where every voice is valued, respected, and acted upon.
- Education – exploring the factors that shape patient safety, including communication, human factors, leadership, decision-making, hierarchy, psychological safety, and the confidence to challenge, to equip professionals with the knowledge, confidence, and skills to recognise and respond to risk.
You are not just a role. And the person on the operating table is not just a patient.
Image provided by Dave James
Join the movement
Real change cannot come from AfPP alone. Creating safer surgery requires collective action from the entire perioperative community. Every conversation started, every experience shared, and every concern raised contributes to a stronger culture of safety for the next patient.
Join the movement. Start the conversation in your workplace. Share your story. Display a poster.
Use #notjusta to show why every voice matters in safer surgery.
Because together we run the operation. Together we create safer surgery.
Coming Soon…
#notjusta Surgery Programme
You can now pre-register for our education modules supporting the #notjusta campaign. Discover the modules listed below and find out how to register.
Module 1: Clinical Decision-Making in Perioperative Practice
Module 2: How Behaviours and Hierarchy Affect Clinical Decision-Making in Perioperative Practice
Module 3: Clinical Confidence and Internal Dialogue in Perioperative Practice
Module 4: Human Factors and System Pressures in Perioperative Practice
Module 5: Leading Change for Safer Surgery in Perioperative Practice
Module 6: Preventing Avoidable Patient Harm for Safer Surgery
Education Modules
Register your interest in the #notjusta education modules (free for AfPP members). The modules will be launching later this year, and by registering your interest now, you’ll be among the first to hear when they become available.
Free Poster
Download the #notjusta poster to add to your hospital noticeboard and help us spread the word.
