New Safety Campaign Initiated, Aimed at Reducing Medical Errors

Memorial Hermann Healthcare System has joined forces with the National Patient Safety Foundation in a nationwide campaign aimed at reducing medical errors. Memorial Hermann is among 16 hospitals around the country launching "Stand Up for Patient Safety," an initiative that calls for replacing traditional barriers to patient safety with a new culture of accountability, trust, system improvement and continuous learning.

The foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by the American Medical Association in 1996 to improve patient safety, endorses the concept that medical errors in this country are systems-related and not due to individual negligence in the hospital.

"Memorial Hermann takes the safety and well-being of every patient seriously," said Memorial Hermann President Dan S. Wilford. "We have implemented many safeguards to ensure patient safety and want to build that momentum on a national level by supporting this initiative. If the nation is going to effectively reduce medical errors, we must start where we can have the greatest impact, and that is in the hospital setting," he said.

The Commonwealth Fund recently reported that one in five Americans, or more than 22 million people, have experienced a medical error of some kind, personally or through at least one family member. That reinforces a 1999 Institute of Medicine report, which concluded that 44,000 to 98,000 deaths each year are the result of medical errors.

Through the Stand Up for Patient Safety campaign, the foundation advocates a process already in practice at Memorial Hermann – engaging hospital boards of trustees in preventing medical errors by supporting full disclosure when errors occur and by allocating adequate resources for prevention. National Patient Safety Foundation will also provide hospitals with new educational materials that can be used to elevate patient safety at the community level. These include pamphlets, posters, videos and Web-based information.

– David Mendel

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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