Introduction

Studies on patient safety in Primary Health Care (PHC) are up to date; however, there are no details on professionals' actual performance in relation to this matter. Thus, it is important to evaluate the safety culture characterization among nursing professionals in this scenario, since it will promote better care for users.

Objective

To evaluate the patient safety culture from the perspective of nurses in Primary Health Care.

Method

Descriptive study of quantitative approach carried out in fourteen health Units in Curitiba City, Paraná State (PR), Brazil from July to December 2017. There were forty-three nurses participating in this study. Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture (MOSPSC) was the tool used, comprising fifty-one questions that evaluate twelve dimensions of patient safety. This tool, Portuguese version, showed a Cronbach alpha coefficient of 0.95, which expresses high reliability. All data were analyzed by Descriptive Statistics using Likert scale.

Results

Inconsistencies were found related to the information exchange with other institutions, work process, fear of guilt, punishment for errors, and management. In the overall evaluation, 50% of the Family Health Strategy (FHS) professionals rated patient safety “very good”, and 73.9% of Basic Health Units (BHU) professionals rated patient safety “good”.

Conclusion

Results show a safety culture with potentialities and weaknesses that need to be developed, considering the nurse the cornerstone to the success of quality and safety enhancement of patient in Primary Health Care.

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