Patient Safety

The Institute of Medicine's landmark report To Err Is Human drew attention to the large number of avoidable medical errors in the US health care system. Much of the response to the report was focused on hospitals, but safety concerns can arise in many settings. This month's DataGraphic highlights patient safety ranging from adverse events in the hospital to the safety performance of nursing homes and complaints made by patients in inpatient psychiatric settings. It also examines safety concerns regarding electronic health records and reports the results of an experiment using a surgical safety checklist in South Carolina.