August 2005
The World Health Organization (WHO) designates The Joint Commission and Joint Commission International as its first Collaborating Centre dedicated to development of Patient Safety Solutions. The Center will focus worldwide attention on Patient Safety Solutions and best practices that can reduce risks to patients, and coordinate international efforts to share, develop and disseminate these solutions as broadly as possible.
August 2005 to June 2006
Work is underway on the development of Patient Safety Solutions. The basic purpose of these solutions is to guide the re-design of patient care processes and to help prevent inevitable human errors in the processes of health care from actually reaching patients. The early work includes creating a template for the solutions and a structured process for obtaining input to develop and refine proposed solutions. In addition, an evaluation process and evaluation criteria—both for the solutions themselves and for the strength of the evidence in support of those solutions—are established.
The inaugural nine Patient Safety Solutions address the issues of look-alike, sound-alike medication names; correct patient identification; hand-over communications; correct procedure at the correct body site; control of concentrated electrolyte solutions; medication accuracy at transitions in care; catheter and tubing mis-connections; needle reuse and injection device safety; and hand hygiene.
June 2006 to November 2006
Draft Patient Safety Solutions are reviewed by an international panel of patient safety experts called the International Steering Committee, as well as Regional Advisory Councils in Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia-Pacific region. In addition, the solutions are reviewed by the Center’s Communications Expert Panel, Medication Safety Expert Panel, and its Patient and Family Advisory Group. Comments are integrated into the proposed solutions utilizing a consensus-building process.
November 2006 to February 2007
Health care professionals, Ministries of Health, international accrediting bodies, international patient safety organizations, and patient and family advocates from around the world are asked to comment on the nine proposed solutions via an Internet survey tool. Comments are received from all regions of the world, and from a cross-section of developing, transitional, and developed countries. The solutions are then further revised.
April 2007
The International Steering Committee reviews the results of the international survey and provides further revisions to the solutions based on the comments received. The International Steering Committee then approves the nine solutions and prioritizes the topic areas for development for the next series of Patient Safety Solutions (2008).
May 2007
The nine Patient Safety Solutions to reduce health care errors that harm millions of people daily throughout the world are unveiled for use by WHO Member States. Distribution is Internet-based and through routine WHO communication channels.