Preventable hospital infections: To Err is Human, to delay is deadly

Ten years ago, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released To Err is Human, reporting that as many as 98,000 Americans die every year from preventable medical errors. Today, on the report's 10-year-anniversary, Consumer's Union Safe Patient Project is hosting a forum in Washington, DC to call attention to the fact that today, we're no safer that we were 10 years ago and to draw attention to their report To Err is Human – To Delay is Deadly which estimates that preventable medical harm still accounts for over 100,000 deaths each year.

The event will be attended by prominent patient safety leaders to discuss what needs to happen to keep patients safe, including former U.S. Treasury Secretary, Paul O'Neill, who wrote a recent op-ed in the New York Times on medical harm; Arthur Levin, a member of the original IOM committee and Director of Center for Medical Consumers; Dr. Rick Shannon, Chairman of the Department of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, whose work has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, ABC and NPR; Merrill Goozner, author of The $800 Million Pill: The Truth Behind the Cost of New Drugs; Charles Ornstein with ProPublica who co-wrote a groundbreaking series detailing serious failures in oversight by the California Board of Registered Nursing; Maggie Mahar, health care fellow at The Century Foundation, writer of HealthBeat Blog and author of Money-Driven Medicine; and leading patient safety advocates.

We've previously reported on alarming medical error and hospital infection rates. A recent Consumer Reports National Research Center survey found that nearly one in five Americans say that they or a family member have acquired a dangerous infection following a medical procedure or hospital stay, and 60 percent of those say the infection was severe or life-threatening. And fifty-three percent said these infections required additional out-of-pocket expenses to treat the infection.

Consumers Union's Safe Patient Project aims to eliminate hospital-acquired infections, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) by making the hospital infection and error rates public, and urging lawmakers to introduce legislation to address the problem. If you've been affected by medical errors or hospital-acquired infections, share your story and sign the petition to make medical errors public, and read our interview with Safe Patient Project campaign manager Lisa McGiffert on preventing hospital infections. And you don't have to travel to DC to witness this important forum—just go to our webcast site and you will be able to click to the streaming video from10AM-3:30PM EST. You will be able to submit your concerns and questions to the moderator as the forum is happening.

—Ginger Skinner