Commission to consult over ways to increase patient safety in Europe
The European Commission has launched a public consultation on patient safety - the first stage of a proposal planned for late 2008 that aims to reduce medical errors and adverse events in healthcare.
The European Commission has launched a public consultation on patient safety - the first stage of a proposal planned for late 2008 that aims to reduce medical errors and adverse events in healthcare.
The consultation is open to all interested parties until May 20. "The key operational objectives of this action are for member states to pool resources, exchange and share information, experiences and expertise at the EU level," the Commission said.
The future proposal aims to facilitate efforts by members states to minimise any harm suffered by patients during health care provision. The Commission said it also wants to increase public trust in available health safety information and in the possibility of obtaining reparations in case of injury.
"A number of studies, both in the EU and in the US suggest that as many as 10% of hospital admissions involve some kind of harm to patients," the Commission said, adding that preventable harm also takes place in non-hospital healthcare settings.
The problems targeted include medication-related errors, such as patients receiving the wrong dose, use of the wrong administration route, healthcare-associated infections, surgical errors, and medical device and equipment-related failures.
Through this proposal, the Commission hopes to complement current legistation on pharmacovigilance, medical device safety, eHealth, and the safety of organs, tissues, blood and cells.
Full text of the consultation can be seen here.