A new concept: Acceptable preventable harm

Blogger Melissa Clarkson offers a wryly humorous take on a goal established by the CMS Partnership for Patients, to reduce preventable harm by 40% between 2010 and 2014.  She asks:

I was not aware that harm comes as a mix of acceptable harm and unacceptable harm and the concern is getting rid of the unacceptable portion.

But if hospitals are striving for such a goal, I simply ask that they fully explain this to patients and families. And to help, I would like to provide some ideas for facilitating this communication.

Here are some of the graphics she proposes for those hospitals who wish to be fully transparent.

For a hospital welcome sign:


For a marketing campaign:


For the front lobby:


More seriously, and perhaps not coincidentally, according to this Modern Healthcare article:

The Leapfrog Group has released the second round of its bi-annual hospital safety scores, which show “sluggish” improvement in patient safety among the nation's hospitals.

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