Improvements in Hospital Adverse Event Rates
Despite 22 years to address the issues about patient safety revealed by To Err Is Human, iatrogenic injury remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalized patients. These adverse outcomes do not result from physicians and other clinicians intentionally harming patients, but reflect systematic failures, including insufficient investment in research and metrics, lack of safety technology innovations, limited infrastructure to deliver high-quality care, and inconsistent adherence to clinical practice guidelines.