Safe Patient Project: Blog Post

A Shot In The Dark: Not Enough California Healthcare Workers are Getting Flu Shots

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:31:51 -0600

It�s the start of flu season and you might be worried about the spread of germs. We�re worried too. Consumers Union�s Safe Patient Project released a report today that found nearly half of all hospital workers in California didn�t get flu shots during the 2008-2009 flu season.

MRSA Study Indicates Good News But Far Too Many Patients Suffering

Wed, 18 Aug 2010 10:56:22 -0600

Last week�s good news of a decline in serious MRSA health care-acquired infections, is a victory for patient safety, but we still have a long way to go to eliminate this very preventable crisis.

Victory for patients! Public reporting of certain infections will go nationwide

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 18:37:06 -0600

Soon it will be easier for you to find out how well your hospital prevents certain infections. As part of the new health care reform law, the Department of Health and Human Services will require hospitals to publicly disclose several types of dangerous hospital infections.

Patient safety activists hold "conversation" with CDC

Fri, 02 Jul 2010 18:02:36 -0600

On June 16, Consumers Union�s Safe Patient Project and 11 patient safety advocates from 10 states attended the first �Consumer Conversation on Healthcare-Associated Infections� at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta.

Let's talk about labels

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 17:34:02 -0600

A bill in California (SB 1390) would create a minimum of 12-point font for the most crucial information on medication labels and would require translation of medication label information into commonly used non-English languages.

Numerators

Fri, 25 Jun 2010 16:46:54 -0600

Guest blog post from Kerry O�Connell of Conifer, Colorado. Kerry is a member of the Colorado Health Facility Acquired Infections Advisory Committee. A committed patient safety advocate, he calls for restoring empathy and compassion in health care.

New CDC report on CLABSIs: One step forward, many more to go

Fri, 04 Jun 2010 18:25:39 -0600

This week the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a state-specific report (not hospital specific) on rates of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) in the ICU as collected by its National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), a monitoring system that looks at hospital infections across the nation.

A Lifesaving Safety Program Your Hospital Should Follow

Tue, 04 May 2010 11:15:35 -0600

An innovative "checklist" to reduce central line bloodstream infections in intensive care units has had incredible success in hospitals where it's been adopted.

Septicemia Statistics and the Need for Death Certificate Reform

Tue, 20 Apr 2010 12:36:36 -0600

Guest blog by Lori Nerbonne of NH Patient Voices--Death certificates are the primary source of important vital statistics in our country � yet too many certificates fail to tell the whole story.

California Moving Too Slow On Patient Safety Progress

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 15:20:52 -0600

Since 2006, California lawmakers have passed laws to improve patient safety, yet the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has been moving at turtle speed to enforce these laws.

New Resource for Those Dissatisfied with a Health Care Experience

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:53:19 -0600

Guest blog post by Deb Wachenheim, Health Quality Manager at Health Care For All (HCFA) in Boston. HCFA has launched a new website that can help patients in Massachusetts and across the country speak up when something goes wrong in the hospital. There is information on asking for help when you are in the hospital, advice on how to file a complaint, and resources available to help you.

California Pharmacy Board Should Support Safer Medication Labels

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:49:32 -0600

Guest blog post written by Syed Sayeed, Policy Analyst at Consumers Union's West Coast Office. CU is calling on California residents to submit comments to the Pharmacy Board by March 10th, in support of requiring all pharmacies to print important label information in at least a 12-point font size.

Jon Stewart: What If We Classified Hospital Infections as Terrorists?

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:34:18 -0600

Surgeon and author Atul Gawande, M.D., discusses the surgical checklist on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

U.S. Congressman dies following surgical error, infection

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:40:18 -0600

Our leaders in Congress experience medical harm, too. On Monday, Politico reported that Pennsylvania U.S. Congressman John Murtha had died as a result of complications from recent gallbladder removal surgery at Bethesda Naval Hospital.

CDC Endorses Public Reporting of Hospital Infections

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:37:54 -0600

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a very clear statement today on public reporting of infection rates, prompted by the Consumer Reports article �Deadly Infections� � a real step forward!