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.
National
This geographic signifier gathers content together on our site which is regarded as having national significance. That includes items at the federal level.
News Articles
- I Predicted It: Social Media Guidance Likely To Be Split Into Multiple Documents Source: Pharma Marketing Blog (Friday June 18, 2010)
FDA social media guidelines for regulating online drug ads to be broken up into multiple documents
- Doctors' role in drug studies criticized Source: Journal Sentinel (Sunday May 30, 2010)
Drug company funded medical studies often skew the truth about drugs, putting patient safety at risk.
- Drug Maker Seen as Uncooperative on Inquiry Source: New York Times (Thursday June 10, 2010)
Major drug company is resisting investigation by Congress and FDA for the recent recall of children’s Tylenol and pediatric medications.
- Infection Control Lacking at Surgical Centers Source: WebMD (Tuesday June 8, 2010)
A new study shows infection prevention lapses in ambulatory surgical centers, including safe hygiene methods and improper handling of medications and equipment.
- Physician Income Relative to Hospital Revenue by Specialty Source: Health Reform Watch (Friday June 4, 2010)
Hospital Annual Revenue per Doctor by Specialty
- July: When not to go to the hospital Source: Science News (Wednesday June 2, 2010)
A new study finds medication error rates spike 10 percent in the month of July.
- Is it Time for the FDA to Chime in on Drug Company Tweets? Source: Xconomy (Wednesday May 26, 2010)
Some drug companies are using Twitter to promote their products and overplay the benefits versus the risks. The FDA is now asking drug companies and other interested parties to submit opinions on how it might regulate the promotion of products using social media and the Internet.
- Hospital infections: Are the germs winning? Source: Asbury Park Press (Sunday May 9, 2010)
“While there are no figures available for New Jersey, if the numbers were extrapolated on the basis of its population of 8.7 million, infections would have caused the death of about 2,800 patients in the state’s hospitals last year. Another 50,000 patients would have contracted infections, again extrapolating from the estimated 1.7 million hospital-acquired infections nationally.”
- What do patients want? And why it matters for Sunshine
This Community Catalyst blog discusses the Physician Payments Sunshine Act passed in the health care reform legislation. It creates a national public website where drug and device companies will report payments and gifts to doctors. Consumers will be able to search the site.
- U.S. to hospitals: Clean up your act Source: CNNMoney.com (Thursday April 29, 2010)
The new health care law contains dozens of provisions, including fining hospitals, to reduce medical errors, hospital-borne infections and costly preventable readmissions.
Research and Reports
- Guidance on public reporting of healthcare-associated infections
Many state and national initiatives are underway to mandate or induce health care organizations to publicly disclose information regarding institutional and physician performance.
- The Problem of Antibiotic Resistance
The problem of antibiotic resistance in treating hospital-acquired infections from the National of Allergy and Infectious Diseases discusses
- National Hospital Compare site suspends effort to publicly report surgical infection prevention measure
After careful consideration the CMS along with the JCAHO have agreed to temporarily suspend public reporting of hospital performance on appropriate antibiotic selection for surgical prophylaxis. CMS and JCAHO will continue to collect data on antibiotic selection for surgical prophylaxis during the temporary suspension but will not publicly report performance on this measure on Hospital Compare.
- The National Quality Forum Releases Voluntary Standards
The NQF, a coalition of medical groups, employers, consumer groups and others, this year released practice standards to reduce hospital infection and other quality of care problems.