purpose: the current development of patient safety reporting systems is criticized for loss of information and low data quality due to the lack of a uniformed domain knowledge base and text processing functionality. to improve patient safety reporting, the present paper suggests an ontological representation of patient safety knowledge.
design/methodology/approach: we propose a framework for constructing an ontological knowledge base of patient safety. the present paper describes our design, implementation, and evaluation of the ontology at its initial stage.
findings: we describe the design and initial outcomes of the ontology implementation. the evaluation results demonstrate the clinical validity of the ontology by a self-developed survey measurement.
research limitations: the proposed ontology was developed and evaluated using a small number of information sources. presently, us data are used, but they are not essential for the ultimate structure of the ontology.
practical implications: the goal of improving patient safety can be aided through investigating patient safety reports and providing actionable knowledge to clinical practitioners. as such, constructing a domain specific ontology for patient safety reports serves as a cornerstone in information collection and text mining methods.
originality/value: the use of ontologies provides abstracted representation of semantic information and enables a wealth of applications in a reporting system. therefore, constructing such a knowledge base is recognized as a high priority in health care.

purpose: the current development of patient safety reporting systems is criticized for loss of information and low data quality due to the lack of a uniformed domain knowledge base and text processing functionality. to improve patient safety reporting, the present paper suggests an ontological representation of patient safety knowledge.
design/methodology/approach: we propose a framework for constructing an ontological knowledge base of patient safety. the present paper describes our design, implementation, and evaluation of the ontology at its initial stage.
findings: we describe the design and initial outcomes of the ontology implementation. the evaluation results demonstrate the clinical validity of the ontology by a self-developed survey measurement.
research limitations: the proposed ontology was developed and evaluated using a small number of information sources. presently, us data are used, but they are not essential for the ultimate structure of the ontology.
practical implications: the goal of improving patient safety can be aided through investigating patient safety reports and providing actionable knowledge to clinical practitioners. as such, constructing a domain specific ontology for patient safety reports serves as a cornerstone in information collection and text mining methods.
originality/value: the use of ontologies provides abstracted representation of semantic information and enables a wealth of applications in a reporting system. therefore, constructing such a knowledge base is recognized as a high priority in health care.