March 8 through March 14 has been named “Patient Safety Awareness Week” by the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF), with the goal of educating both healthcare professionals and patients themselves on safety-related issues.
The year’s theme, “United in Safety,” highlights the importance of relationships and emphasizes the fact that everyone has a role to play in ensuring safe health care. Providers, patients, and advocates are all united by the goal of keeping patients free from harm, and this campaign serves as a reminder that maintaining communication between all members of this partnership is essential to making healthcare safer and more effective.
Patient safety is an important cause for all of us at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg, and Cardea, P.A.. For over 30 years, we have been committed to this cause and understanding new developments within the healthcare system.
A growing body of research suggests that patients who are actively involved in their health care reduce the risk of being harmed by medical errors. But patients aren’t alone in their quest for improved safety—effective healthcare is driven by positive relationships between everyone involved in the healthcare process.
For Patient Safety Awareness Week 2015, NPSF has teamed up with expert organizations in the field to develop and disseminate educational materials for clinicians, health systems, and patients and consumers specifically related to better understand how patients and providers can enhance communication, which can increase engagement.
For resources and news about patient and family engagement, stay informed by following Patient Safety Awareness Week on social media, log on to the official Facebook page or follow along on Twitter using #PSAW2015.