Quality Matters - April 2006
<p><br><br>Welcome to <a href="/cnlib/pub/enews_clickthrough.htm?enews_item_id=21856&return_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ecmwf%2Eorg%2Fpublications%2Fpublications%5Fshow%2Ehtm%3Fdoc%5Fid%3D367238%26%23doc367238">Quality Matters,</a> a monthly roundup of news and opinion on quality measurement, information technology, quality improvement initiatives, and policy innovations.<br><br><strong>Issue of the Month: Patient Safety</strong><br />A new Fund report describes case studies of pacesetters in the patient safety arena. The case studies demonstrate that patient injuries are not an inevitable side effect of care. A culture of safety does not just evolve; it is actively created. In addition, the cases demonstrate improvement is possible--that applying the emergent knowledge and tools can result in higher-quality care and greater patient safety. <a href="/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=367238#issue">More</a><br /><br /><strong>Perspective: Patient Safety--Beyond the "Easy" Phase</strong><br />According to Paul M. Schyve, M.D., senior vice president of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the good news is that the science, patient safety tools, and our knowledge of safe practices have advanced rapidly since the 1999 Institute of Medicine report on error in health care. Unfortunately, as difficult as this process of change has been, it is the "easy" phase. According to Schyve, developing and maintaining a safe culture is the "hard" phase--the real, underlying challenge to successfully applying safety science and safe practices throughout health care. <a href="/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=367238#perspective">More</a><br /><br /><strong>News Briefs</strong><br />Selected stories on patient safety, health care quality, and information technology. <a href="/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=367238#news">More</a><br><br><a href="/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=367238#recentpubs">Recent Publications of Note</a><br><br><a href="/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=367238#recenteds">Recent Editorials/Perspectives of Note</a></p>
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/newsletters/ealerts/2006/apr/quality-matters----april-2006