Kaiser Permanente, the National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems, and the National Patient Safety Foundation have launched a program designed to improve patient safety at 85 public hospitals that serve low-income populations, Government Health IT reports.
Kaiser Permanente will contribute $718,000 for the two-year project.
The groups already have selected the first 42 hospitals to participate in the first phase of the program and plan to select the remaining 43 facilities in 2010 (Mosquera, Government Health IT, 12/9).
The patient safety initiative aims to:
- Develop community programs to bolster patient safety in public hospitals;
- Establish a unified pool of patient safety knowledge, techniques and tools;
- Foster a community of public hospital workers committed to patient safety;
- Gather measurable results from patient safety projects; and
- Position public hospitals as leaders in patient safety.
Hospitals participating in the program will have access to various resources including specialized tools for analysis, measurement and public communication (Commins, HealthLeaders Media, 12/9).