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Report finds medical errors throughout developed countries
Study: Less medication may decrease patient falls
Oregon in need of 'Klingon' health care interpreter

Patient Safety Monitor Alert, May 13, 2003

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REPORT FINDS MEDICAL ERRORS THROUGHOUT DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

Medical errors may be common in the United States, but they're also prevalent in other industrialized countries. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States share similar patient safety problems, according to a new study from the Commonwealth Fund, Harvard, and Harris Interactive.

Researchers surveyed adults with health problems in the five countries and found that many patients encountered problems with care coordination, physician/patient communication, and access to health care.

Though none of the surveyed countries had an outstandingly low rate of medication errors, the United States compared poorly against other developed nations. For instance, 28 percent of the patients surveyed in the United States said that they had experienced a medication error or medical mistake in the past two years, whereas in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, fewer than 25 percent of patients made the same claim.

The article, titled "Common Concerns Amid Diverse Systems: Health Care Experiences in Five Countries," was published in the May/June issue of the journal, Health Affairs. Go to www.cmwf.org to read the report.

STUDY: LESS MEDICATION MAY DECREASE PATIENT FALLS

Health care staff trying to prevent patient falls may want to turn their attention to the medications that the patients take. A recent study found that elderly patients fell less often after pharmacist intervention. Researchers who examined 200 patients at a Florida rehabilitation center report that the patients fell 47% less frequently after a "fall-focused pharmaceutical intervention program" in which pharmacists reviewed and cut back on some of their medications. Here are some of the specific medications the pharmacists decreased, according to a press release:

- Cardiovascular drugs
- Analgesics
- Psychoactive drugs
- Sedatives
- Hypnotic drugs

The decrease in falls will save the rehabilitation facility about $308,000 per year, according to the release. The study, "Clinical and Economic Outcomes of a Fall-Focused Pharmaceutical Intervention Program" was published in the May 15 issue of the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.

OREGON IN NEED OF 'KLINGON' HEALTH CARE INTERPRETER

Patient safety professionals know that it's not always easy to find someone to interpret for patients that speak Russian, Chinese, or Swahili. But perhaps they should count their blessings. Some health care officials are on an even more challenging hunt-for a "Klingon" interpreter.

The Associated Press (AP) reports that Department of Human Services officials in Multnomah County, Oregon, have found that some mental health patients will speak only Klingon, a language created for characters on the Star Trek television series. Since the county is obliged to provide information in all the languages spoken by clients, the officials must now find a Klingon-English interpreter. The AP did not clarify whether the officials have yet located any suitable applicants.

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