Statistical significance in safety outcomes indicates what?

• A. It proves causation
• B. It indicates the observed change is unlikely due to random variation
• C. It guarantees improvements
• D. It has no relation to program outcomes

Answer: (B)

Statistical significance tells you whether the observed change in safety outcomes is unlikely to be due to random variation in the data, given the chosen level of evidence. In other words, it provides evidence that the effect you’re seeing is real in the population, not just a fluke of sampling.

This is why it’s the best choice: it accurately captures the idea that the result is unlikely to occur by chance alone. It does not prove causation—another study design or additional controls are needed to claim that the change was caused by a specific intervention. It also doesn’t guarantee that safety has genuinely improved in every sense or in practical terms; a result can be statistically significant but have only a small or routine real-world impact. And it doesn’t mean there’s no relationship to program outcomes; significance merely indicates that the observed effect is unlikely to be random.