ColoradoReports from the states with laws requiring public reporting of medical errors.
Links to state grant submissions from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act stimulus money for hospital-acquired infection plans.
Summary of state laws hospital infection reporting laws.
Passed in 2007, Colorado’s Michael Skolnik Medical Transparency Act (Michael’s Law) brings to light vital physician information–such as disciplinary actions and malpractice information–so that if you are ever faced with a decision like the Skolnik family, you will no longer be in the dark.
The January issue of Consumer Reports on Health newsletter tells patients and their relatives how to get the best care and prevent hospital infections and medication errors.
Lawmakers’ push for infection rate disclosure pays off after two-year campaign
Meet the eleven consumer advocates who will be attending a U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS)hospital infection meeting this week.
Hospital infection survivor and “numerator,” Kerry O’Connell describes the emotional and physical impact of hospital infection on patients and calls for more empathy and honesty from our health care providers.
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.
Join patient safety advocates across the country tomorrow to observe Patient Safety Day.
More people know about hospital acquired infections and medical errors than you might think, and not just from watching Oprah.
Colorado Citizens for Accountability has launched its new patient safety website: PatientsRightToKnow.org. It contains a U.S. map where you can find out what physician background reporting is available in your state.
Patty and David Skolnik tragically lost their only son, Michael, from complications after a brain surgery. Since Michael’s death, Patty founded Citizens for Patient Safety, an organization committed to take action to protect our health and safety from medical errors.
Disabled by faulty arm surgery and harmed by a hospital-acquired infection, a patient wishes he’d been better informed. Article by Colorado patient safety advocate Kerry O’Connell for Health Affairs.
An ongoing malpractice investigation centering on a Denver, Colorado oral surgeon has uncovered evidence that he reused syringes and needles, potentially putting thousands of patients at risk of contracting hepatitis or the HIV virus, state health officials revealed on Friday.
Patty Skolnik, founder of Colorado Citizens for Patient Safety profiled as a local Colorado activist for her work to make medical professionals’ histories public in honor of her son Michael, and her mission to make the medical system safer than how she found it.
Colorado publication: Patient safety advocates are asking Congress to step up the regulation of such medical devices as hip replacements and heart stents. Comments by Lisa McGiffert, Director of Consumers Union’s Safe Patient Project.
CO hospitals’ infection rates checked for first time. Infections under-reported by 33.9%.
Over a 12-month period, from April 2010, through March 2011, 664 Colorado dialysis patients suffered some form of infection related to their treatment, according to a report released by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The report, though, did not break down the numbers by provider making it unhelpful to Colorado consumers looking for information about their local dialysis facilities.
Couple believes their newborn died from a hospital’s delay in test results.
Hospital infection survivor and “numerator,” Kerry O’Connell describes the emotional and physical impact of hospital infection on patients and calls for more empathy and honesty from our health care providers.
Patty Skolnik, founder of Citizens for Patient Safety, shared her personal story about the death of her son Michael to an audience of medical professionals, leaving a lasting impact. To learn more about Citizens for Patient Safety, including its upcoming workshops and seminars and Michael’s story, please visit their website at www.citizensforpatientsafety.org.
Thanks to the Michael Skolnik Medical Transparency Act of 2010, consumers can now search for online profiles of different healthcare professionals.
Look up your Colorado physician’s background on AskDora.Colorado.gov.
Abstract: Colorado study of physician self-reported adverse occurrences finds high frequency of surgical errors despite implementation of a surgical protocol that seeks to prevent them; researchers identified a total of 25 wrong-patient and 107 wrong-site procedures between January 2002 and June 2008.
In 2001, Patty and David Skolnik spent nearly three years watching their only child, Michael, play victim to a broken system as a result of unnecessary brain surgery. Due to medical error caused by negligence and incompetence, routine expectations of our healthcare system proved ineffective in providing quality medical care and patient safety for 22 year old Michael Skolnik.
Susan Zalatan shared her husband Tony’s hospital infection story with the Stop Hospital Infection Campaign and later both became dedicated advocates for a public disclosure law in Colorado. After contracting a staph infection at a Denver-area hospital, Tony spent 54 days in a coma and doctors amputated his left leg, right foot and five fingertips. Although the couple was physically, emotionally and financially impacted by the infection, they made a commitment to advocate for a disclosure law so that other people would be less likely to get a hospital infection…
After Michael Skolnik passed out in September 2001, his neurosurgeon told his parents that Michael needed to have brain surgery within two days. The three hour operation lasted six hours with no cyst ever being found. This marked the beginning of a 32-month nightmare of brain surgeries, infections, and more than $4,000,000 in medical bills.
The Safe Patient Project is a Consumers Union campaign focused on eliminating medical harm, improving FDA oversight of prescription drugs and promoting disclosure laws that give information to consumers about health care safety and quality.