Profession
Michigan commission proposes voluntary error-reporting system
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted April 24, 2006
The Michigan State Commission on Patient Safety, a coalition representing business, insurance and medical leaders, recommended that the state create a patient-safety organization to allow hospitals to voluntarily report errors in a safe legal environment and share information about how to improve safety and learn from near misses. The data would be protected from use in medical liability lawsuits.
The commission proposed a state-funded Michigan Center for Safe Health Care to serve as a clearinghouse for the error data, which would be collected beginning in 2008. The panel did not recommend a specific list of reportable events, though it did consider the National Quality Forum's list of never events, such as wrong-site surgery and patient falls resulting in death.
Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm reacted positively to the report, and it will be up to her to work with the Legislature to pass a bill to create and fund the error-reporting system.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2006/04/24/prbf0424.htm.