Canadian Patient Safety Week launches in Vancouver
Theme for week is Knowledge is the Best Medicine. Ask. Talk. Listen.
Friday September 26, 2008 -- Jason Thompson
Canadian Patient Safety Institute (CPSI) officials were in Vancouver Thursday for the launch of the fourth annual Canadian Patient Safety Week.

The week is designed to raise awareness of patient safety issues and medication errors, which according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, adversely impact 1.5 million Canadians each year. One in ten hospital patients will receive the wrong medication or wrong dosage.

"The week will encourage patients to become involved by speaking up and asking more questions, communicating with healthcare providers, and understanding the important role they play in providing accurate information about their current medications," CPSI CEO Phil Hassen said at the launch.
 
Throughout Canadian patient Safety Week, scheduled for Sept. 29 to Oct. 4, healthcare organizations and frontline professionals from across the country will promote and share information on medication reconciliation in their organizations and communities.

The week is also an opportunity to encourage patient to become involved in their own healthcare by knowing what medications they’re taking, keeping records of them and sharing accurate medication information with providers.

"Regrettably, errors do happen," Hassen said.

"Our goal is to learn from past adverse events in order to prevent them in the future. The Canadian Patient Safety Institute, through initiatives such as Canadian Patient Safety Week, want to raise the awareness about the challenges facing the healthcare system, and educate the patient on how they can actively participate in ensuring a positive experience by being knowledgeable about their own medication usage, and sharing that information with their caregivers."
   
In conjunction with Safer Healthcare Now (SHN), a national healthcare campaign led by CPSI to reduce the number of deaths and preventable injuries due to adverse events, Canadian Patient Safety Week also signals the launch of a pilot project to raise awareness of the frequency of adverse drug events within home-care settings.

The Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada (HIROC) is also showing support for Canadian Patient Safety Week by partnering with CPSI and Canada's Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies (Rx&D) to produce a public service announcement for radio broadcast. A number of provinces have also agreed to purchase additional airtime for the announcement.

Click here for more information on how your organization can take part in Canadian Patient Safety Week.

What is your organization doing to support the objectives of Canadian Patient Safety Week? To share your story with HIROC News, contact the news room by phoning 800-294-0051 or e-mail jason(at)axiomnews.ca.