Patients for patient safety

By definition, patients and consumers of health care are at the very centre of the quest to improve patient safety. When things go wrong they are the victims of the harm induced. Their plight and that of their families and carers is often compounded by the way that a serious adverse event is handled —an unwillingness to be open and honest about what happened, the absence of an apology, the lack of any ongoing counselling and support and the failure to provide an explanation of what went wrong or any reassurance that it could not happen again to somebody else.

In this respect, viewing the true needs of patients who are harmed generates an impetus for much fundamental work with patients and their representatives in order to transform the present situation.

Equally, patients and patient organizations could play a vital role in helping to identify risks and to devise solutions. Worldwide there are organizations and movements that have focused on meeting this current need, for example, “Consumers Advancing Patient Safety” in the USA and “Action against Medical Accidents” in the UK.

Moreover, there are examples of within-country patient safety programmes where the consumers’ involvement has been developed as an important strand within the overall programme, a good example of which is the “Speak Up for Patient Safety” campaign launched in the USA in 2001 by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

The World Alliance for Patient Safety represents a major opportunity to put the patient and the consumer at the centre of the international movement to improve patient safety. Patients for Patient Safety, one of six action areas embodied in the World Alliance, is designed to ensure that the perspective of patients and families, consumers and citizens – whichever term resonates best - is a central reference point in shaping this important work. This action area will be led by the patient safety consumer movement,

An early aim is to identify patients, families and consumer organizations interested in the work of the Alliance. To this end, this webpage will be developed shortly as an up to date source of information on the work of Patients for Patient Safety. In the meantime, if you are interested in finding out more please email: p4ps@who.int

UK requires patient safety competencies of its doctors in training
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Pre Conference Meeting at ISQua Conference
WHO hosted a preconference meeting to consider the methodologies that will be used for the 13 studies that will be conducted during 2005. These studies will aim to estimate the nature and extent of adverse events in developing countries.
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Reporting and Learning
WHO will publish initial guidelines for countries that wish to establish "adverse event reporting systems".

Poland Meeting 26th July
WHO supported the Polish Ministry for Health and the Polish Society for Quality Promotion in Health Care in raising the profile on Patient Safety and considering the need for a National strategy when Sir Liam Donaldson made a keynote speech in the role of the World Alliance recently in Krakow.
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Group attending Krakow patient safety meeting [jpg 466kb]

Irish meeting in Patient Safety 23 June
A unique event was hosted by the Irish Royal College of Surgeons, the Irish Society for Quality and Safety in Healthcare and WHO on 23 and 24 June. The event focused in patient safety in Ireland and enabled a group of international experts to advise WHO on the priorities that the new alliance should consider.
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WHA Technical Briefing on Patient Safety & the establishment of an International Alliance
A very sucessful briefing took place at the Palais des Nations on Thursday 20th May, as part of the 57th World Health Assembly.
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Mandatory reporting system implemented
In Pennsylvania (USA) nearly 400 heath care facilities have begun mandatory reporting of events.

Canadian Adverse Events Study discovers an overall AE incidence rate of 7.5%
An adverse event (AE) rate of 7.5% suggests that of the almost 2.5 million annual hospital admissions in Canada (similar to the type studied) about 185,000 are associated with an adverse event, and close to 70,000 of these are potentially preventable.

US National Patient Safety Goals
The US Joint Commission's Board of Commissioners approved the 2004 National Patient Safety Goals. These include a requirement to focus on reducing the risk of health care-acquired infections.

UK National Reporting System launched
A national reporting system aimed at helping the NHS in England and Wales improve patient safety has been launched

10 tips for safer healthcare
The Australian Safety and Quality Council have produced a booklet to assist people to become more involved in their health care.

International consultation on hospital-acquired infections
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WHO Forum for Government Chief Nurses
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