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States' efforts to improve patient safety have grown in number and scope in recent years--prompted by rising health care budgets and evidence of the excessive costs associated with medical errors. Twenty-six states now have systems for collecting data on adverse events. States such as Pennsylvania, Utah, and Oregon are combining data collection with education, communication strategies, and/or collaboration to improve patient safety. Read more »
Pennsylvania is undertaking a multifaceted approach to improve both health care quality and safety. Read more »
Utah is pursuing a two-pronged strategy to reduce adverse events and medical errors: leveraging existing data collection efforts to identify adverse events and providing feedback to health care providers. Read more »
Oregon's Patient Safety Commission created a voluntary, confidential reporting system for adverse events. Hospitals began reporting data in 2006, and the program is now being expanded to include nursing homes, ambulatory surgery centers, and retail pharmacies. Read more »
States can encourage health information exchange as policy leaders, funding sources, data collectors, facilitators, or neutral conveners. They can leverage their roles as major health care purchasers and policymakers to drive collaboration--reaching across public and private sectors to build support among the many stakeholders that are needed to create, operate, and sustain these networks. Read more »
The Arizona Medicaid Health Information Exchange Utility is a Web-based system for exchanging patients' health records and other medical information among the state's Medicaid providers. Read more »
The Florida Health Information Network operates at the community level, with the state supporting and encouraging local collaborations focused on health information exchange. Read more »
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