NASHP - Maximizing the Use of State Adverse Event Data to Improve Patient Safety

During the nearly six years since the Institute of Medicine released its first report on medical errors, there has been growing recognition of the size and scope of the problem.
Many US states have responded by creating or improving reporting systems for collecting hospital-based adverse events. As of September 2005, twenty-four states had passed legislation or regulation related to hospital reporting of adverse events.

In May 2005, National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) convened a meeting of data collectors, analysts, and users to identify mechanisms to improve reporting, tools used for event report analysis and dissemination, and opportunities for improvement.
This report reviews key findings from the meeting to assist states in improving their reporting systems and to encourage providers to improve the quality of the required reports so that data are credible and useful in shaping patient safety improvement interventions.

Full text