Patients for Patient Safety US Announces Patient Safety and Health Equity Summit Highlighting Diagnostic Safety on World Patient Safety Day in Washington DC, Sept. 15-17, 2024

WASHINGTON, June 18, 2024 (Newswire.com) - Patients for Patient Safety US (PFPS US) urges Americans impacted by missed or delayed diagnoses, bias or medical error to convene in Washington, D.C. for a Summit held Sept. 15-17, 2024. The World Health Organization designates Sept. 17 as World Patient Safety Day. WPSD 2024’s theme is Improving Diagnosis for Patient Safety.

Diagnostic errors contribute to 10% of patient deaths across health settings, harming or killing almost 800,000 people in the U.S. annually. The largest cause of medical malpractice claims, diagnostic errors, disproportionately impact marginalized groups. “Bias in diagnostic errors contributes to higher rates of harm or death,” said Sue Sheridan, co-founder of PFPS US, whose husband died of cancer due to diagnostic failure.

“For too long, patients have been left on the sidelines without a voice. This year, we’ll be making ourselves heard in a big way,” said L. Bradley Schwartz, President of Greater National Advocates and a PFPS US Patient Safety Champion suffering multiple amputations due to delayed sepsis diagnosis.

Find the full Summit event list at https://www.pfps.us/wpsd-2024, including:

• Sunday, Sept. 15: Welcome reception and dinner at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center to launch Project PIVOT, a national project identifying patient-prioritized outcomes and experiences by collaborating with patient organizations, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Johns Hopkins University, Harvard Medical School, and others.
• Monday, Sept. 16:  Participants visit Capitol Hill to urge Congressional leaders to ACT Now for patient safety, diagnostic safety and health equity solutions. ACT Now is PFPS US’s urgent request to leaders for Accountability, Coordination, and Transparency in health care. Later, PFPS US and AcademyHealth co-host a film premiere of The Pitch: The Next Generation of Patient Safety, documenting one entrepreneur's quest to use artificial intelligence for safer healthcare.
• Tuesday, Sept. 17, World Patient Safety Day: The March for Patient Safety begins at Freedom Plaza and ends with a remembrance ceremony on the U.S. Capitol Lawn honoring those who have died from and/or are impacted by preventable harm. Afterward, PFPS US and Bloomberg Center co-host a World Patient Safety Day Leadership Briefing with government leaders.

“The Summit is a patient call-to-action to implement known solutions nationwide,” said PFPS US co-founder Martin Hatlie. Twenty-five years after the Institute of Medicine spoke out on unsafe care with To Err is Human, preventative harm remains the U.S.'s third largest cause of preventable death.

PFPS US is working with partners to sponsor scholarships for patient safety, diagnostic quality and health equity advocates, especially those from marginalized communities who need financial assistance to attend. Sign up to participate in the WPSD Summit or partner with PFPS US at https://www.pfps.us/wpsd-2024.

About Patients for Patient Safety US (www.pfps.us): A branch of the World Health Organization Patients for Patient Safety, PFPS US is a U.S.-based, patient-led nonprofit pursuing transparency, accountability, and patient/family engagement to improve healthcare. 

Media Contact: Sue Sheridan, ssheridan@pfps.us

Source: Patients for Patient Safety US