Abstract
Reporting of adverse events - when things go wrong - is crucial to enable investigation and then improvement in the safety of the health system. Reporting is also the important first step for ensuring that open disclosure to patients occurs.
The eight sentinel events which Health Ministers asked public hospitals to report on in 2004 represent only a sample of adverse events and in 2008 comprehensive reporting and investigation systems are standard in both public and private hospitals. The challenge for the future is to ensure we maximise the investment the Australian healthcare system has made in incident reporting so that system problems are identified and then corrected to reduce the likelihood of further error.
The eight sentinel events which Health Ministers asked public hospitals to report on in 2004 represent only a sample of adverse events and in 2008 comprehensive reporting and investigation systems are standard in both public and private hospitals. The challenge for the future is to ensure we maximise the investment the Australian healthcare system has made in incident reporting so that system problems are identified and then corrected to reduce the likelihood of further error.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Windows into safety and quality in health care 2008 |
| Place of Publication | Sydney |
| Publisher | Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care |
| Pages | 83-90 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780980346275 |
| Publication status | Published - 2008 |
| Externally published | Yes |