5 ways Massachusetts hopes to reduce medical errors statewide

Medical errors kill up to 9,000 patients per year.  The death of Betsy Lehman, a cancer patient — and former columnist for The Boston Globe — as a result of a medical error in Boston nearly 30 years ago, has now prompted Massachusetts to embark on revamped efforts to address medical errors in health facilities. 

The Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety, a state agency that aims to improve patient safety and outcomes, published a comprehensive Roadmap to Health Care Safety for Massachusetts, outlining goals and strategies to achieve them. 

"Massachusetts has a long history of breakthroughs on intractable health system challenges," the plan's executive summary reads. "During this time of recovery from the disruptions of the pandemic, we are well-positioned to chart a new course through a public-private partnership that leverages proven strategies to advance safety, health equity, workforce well-being, operational efficiencies that improve care and lower costs and patient experience."

The roadmap's five goals to achieving better patient safety standards are outlined as:

  1. Healthcare leaders must play a central role in establishing and sustaining cultures of safety and improvement at their respective organizations.

  2. Healthcare organizations and facilities must have standards and clear processes to equip their employees with tools they need to identify safety issues and execute appropriate responses accordingly.

  3. Communication with patients and families should be clear, timely and provide the information necessary for them to avoid medical errors and harm in their own care at home.

  4. Healthcare organizations are safer for patients when they are taking care of their employees and removing barriers and causes of undue stress and unnecessary processes that are ineffective or contribute to safety risks in any way.

  5. State healthcare data is up-to-date, transparent, usable and timely for clinicians, organizations, policymakers and other stakeholders to understand and utilize for improved safety practices. 

The agency underscores that these goals must be executed with clear strategies and the "collective statewide effort among provider organizations, patients, payers, policymakers, regulators and others."

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