The Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005
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According to a report published by the Institute of Medicine in 1999, at least 44,000 people, and perhaps as many as 98,000 people, die in hospitals in the United States each year as a result of preventable medical errors. Fear of liability is a key factor in caregivers concealing mistakes, thereby discouraging the reporting of errors and communications about developing proactive approaches to preventing them.
In July 2005, Congress passed an amendment to Title IX of the Public Health Service Act to provide for the improvement of patient safety initiatives and to reduce the incidence of events that adversely effect patient safety. The Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 (PSQIA) creates a system for voluntary reporting of medical errors to promote the development of interventions and solutions that ensure patient safety. The legislation encourages a culture of safety and quality by providing for the legal protection of voluntarily reported patient safety data, providing incentives for the creation of voluntary reporting systems that are non-punitive to promote learning, and providing mechanisms to share and disseminate information about improving patient safety.
The Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act stipulates that the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will develop a process for the voluntary and confidential reporting of health care related errors by health care organizations to Patient Safety Organizations (PSOs) which will develop ways to improve patient safety and reduce medical errors. PSOs will perform core functions under the law, including data collection and reporting, and providing technical assistance to prevent medical errors from re-occurring. A network of patient safety databases will be developed that can accept, aggregate, and analyze non-identifiable patient safety data. Voluntary use of national standards to promote electronic exchange of health care information will be developed or adopted, allowing for the comparison of data across multiple health information technology systems. The primary mission of the PSO will be to conduct activities that improve patient safety and the quality of health care delivery.
Health Care Excel (HCE), with its subsidiaries, is highly qualified to provide the full scope of PSO services required by the legislation, and plans to apply for certification as a PSO. HCE is a not-for-profit company that provides consultation and quality improvement services to promote and enhance the delivery of cost-effective health care of the highest quality in a dynamic environment. With seven offices and more than 250 associates, the company manages multiple contracts for federal and state government programs.
Please email pso@hce.org for additional information
