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December 16, 2020

Patient Safety Beat Patient safety news and progress in Massachusetts.

From the Executive Director

Without a doubt, 2020 has been a uniquely challenging year. That's why we're especially gratified that the 37 member organizations of the Massachusetts Healthcare Safety and Quality Consortium persevered to produce A Roadmap to Healthcare Safety for Massachusetts, a strategic plan for embedding safety principles and practices in every health care setting across the state. The Roadmap establishes a vision and concrete goals under four foundational “pillars” of health care safety: leadership and governance; continuous organizational learning and improvement; supporting patients, families, clinicians and staff; and measurement and transparency. We are now moving into the second phase of the Consortium’s work: convening task forces that will do the heavy lift of developing strategic, programmatic and policy recommendations for achieving the Roadmap’s goals. For this final 2020 edition of Patient Safety Beat, four colleagues reflect on how the pandemic underscores the importance of each of the Roadmap’s pillars and share lessons learned. I thank them for their stories and perspectives, which I am sure will resonate with you as well. Thanks to each of you for everything you do to keep safety at the forefront of decision-making during the difficult circumstances brought on by the pandemic. My very best wishes for a happy holiday season, and a healthy New Year. Better days are ahead!   Sincerely,

Barbara Fain

What are you learning from the pandemic that will shape patient safety efforts going forward?

On leadership and governance: "This pandemic has strengthened our organization’s collective resolve." More with Lou Woolf from Hebrew SeniorLife On continuous learning and improvement: "The pandemic has changed how we approach our shared responsibility to care for each other." More with Barbara Spivak from Mount Auburn Cambridge Independent Practice Association

On support for all: "The pandemic has exposed both the best of what health care has to offer and also gaps in the system we all rely on for safety." More with Patricia McGaffigan from Institute for Healthcare Improvement On measurement and transparency: "Data that used to be collected annually are now being collected monthly, weekly or even daily."  More with Ray Campbell from the Center for Health Information and Analysis

Patient Safety Beat is published by the Betsy Lehman Center, a state agency that supports providers, patients and policymakers working together to advance the safety and quality of health care.

BetsyLehmanCenterMA.gov

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