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Oakbrook Terrace and Oak Brook, Illinois, December 19, 2007 — The World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Patient Safety and the WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety today invited health ministries, health care provider organizations, health care professionals, patient safety advocates, consumers and other interested parties to comment on five proposed, potentially life-saving Patient Safety Solutions that have been selected as priorities by the Collaborating Centre's International Steering Committee. The Collaborating Centre, jointly sponsored by The Joint Commission and Joint Commission International, develops selected Patient Safety Solutions in coordination with the WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety. This activity represents the "Solutions" program of the WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety, which translates knowledge about patient safety interventions into practical solutions for use by the global community. The electronic Patient Safety Solutions survey will be available online until February 29, 2008 at www.jcipatientsafety.org/survey.

This new set of Patient Safety Solutions addresses the following challenges:

• Prevention of patient falls;
  
  
• Prevention of pressure ulcers;
  
  
• Response to the deteriorating patient;
  
  
• Communication of critical test results; and
  
  
• Prevention of bloodstream infections associated with central lines.

The intent of these Solutions and others that have been issued previously is to guide the re-design of patient care processes to prevent inevitable human errors from actually reaching patients.

The proposed Patient Safety Solutions have already been reviewed by the International Steering Committee and Regional Advisory Councils in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region and the WHO Alliance. Their comments have already been integrated into the proposed solutions. The Middle East Advisory Council will meet early in 2008, and its comments will be included with the input received from the overall international field review. This Internet-based survey is one of the most critical stages in the Solutions development process.

The Collaborating Centre is specifically interested in comments regarding the content and feasibility of these Solutions and would particularly value input from those who have actually experienced adverse health care events that relate to the proposed Solutions. The field survey also asks about barriers to using the solutions and how the Solutions might be adapted to accommodate cultural realities in different regions of the world. After the feedback from the field review has been incorporated into the Solutions, they will again be reviewed and then acted upon by the International Steering Committee in the spring of 2008.

"A differentiating and very positive aspect of the work of the Collaborating Centre has been the collaborative nature of the work and the fact that the Solutions are reviewed by various professionals and patients throughout the world to better understand their feasibility and applicability," says Karen H. Timmons, president and chief executive officer, Joint Commission Resources, Inc. and Joint Commission International., Inc.

The first set of Patient Safety Solutions was launched earlier this year. These Solutions addressed the issues of look-alike, sound-alike medications; correct patient identification; hand-over communications; wrong-site, wrong-patient surgery; use of concentrated electrolyte solutions; medication reconciliation; catheter and tubing misconnections; needle reuse and injection safety; and hand hygiene.

Questions about the field survey can be addressed to Gerry Castro, project director, Joint Commission International Center for Patient Safety at gcastro@jointcommission.org. For more information about the Patient Safety Solutions project, please access HYPERLINK "http://www.jcipatientsafety.org/"www.jcipatientsafety.org.

About the World Alliance for Patient Safety
The World Alliance for Patient Safety is a WHO programme launched in 2004 by the late WHO Director-General. The Alliance, chaired by Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer of the United Kingdom, addresses 10 major action areas:

The Global Patient Safety Challenge will galvanize global commitment and action on a patient safety topic, which addresses a significant area of risk for all countries. In 2005‚2006, the Global Patient Safety Challenge is focusing on health care-associated infection with the theme Clean Care is Safer Care. For 2007‚2008, the Global Patient Safety Challenge will focus on the topic of safer surgery with the theme Safe Surgery Saves Lives.

Patients for Patient Safety will ensure that the voice of patients is at the core of the patient safety movement worldwide.

Reporting and learning will promote valid reporting, analytical and investigative tools and approaches that identify sources and causes of risks in ways that promote learning and preventative action.

Taxonomy for Patient Safety will develop an internationally acceptable system for classifying patient safety information to promote more effective international learning.

Research for patient safety will facilitate an international research agenda which supports the safer health care in all WHO member states.

Safety Solutions will translate knowledge into practical solutions and disseminate these solutions internationally.

Safety in Action will spread best practices for implementation of changes in organizational, team and clinical practices to improve patient safety.

Technology and patient safety will focus on the opportunities to harness new technologies to improve patient safety.

Care of acutely ill patients will identify key patient safety priorities for action in the care of seriously ill patients.

Patient safety knowledge at your fingertips will work with Member States and partners to gather and share knowledge on patient safety developments globally in the form of a global report.

Further information on the work of the Alliance is available at www.who.int/patientsafety.