Year-End Issue  |  December 2017

From the Director

Sharing the wealth ... of knowledge

In the 18 or so months since we launched Patient Safety Beat, we have been privileged to spend time talking with many of you about your efforts to keep patients free from harm. One recurring theme has been the desire for more opportunities to share learnings about proven strategies for mitigating critical risks in a wide range of care settings. In the coming year, expect to see some new, engaging features as we continue to use this monthly forum to chronicle your triumphs and challenges. And please let us know if you have a story to share with our 4,000+ Massachusetts subscribers. For now, here are our "top 5" picks from the past year.

Wishing you and yours the very best for 2018!

Barbara Fain, Executive Director

Top 5 Patient Safety Beat Stories of 2017

Most popular: Putting an accent on safety

The staff at South Shore Health System is promoting diligent hand-washing among providers, Boston style, with phrases like “soap & watah” and “hand sanitizah.” 

How one hospital learned from a frightening MRI incident

Allen Kachalia, MD, JD, Chief Quality Officer at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, spoke about the benefits and learning advantages of being transparent about a safety lapse 

In their own words: young doctors talk about humility, listening and other approaches to patient safety

We asked residents and interns at teaching hospitals across the state one question about patient safety. See what they had to say 

When patients speak limited English, be wary of online translation tools

An alert on the use of Google Translate offers a vital warning on how translation programs provide erroneous or nonsensical translations that can lead to medical misunderstandings and compromise patient safety 

Ten tips for getting patient identification right every time

ID mistakes can be prevented with help from everyone who sees the patient 

Patient Safety Beat is published monthly by the Betsy Lehman Center, a state agency that uses communications, research, and data to catalyze the efforts of providers, policymakers, and consumers working toward safer health care in Massachusetts.