New National Patient Safety Goals Take Effect January 1 For All JointCommission-Accredited Organizations

January 6, 2003 New National Patient Safety Goals Take Effect January 1 For All Joint Commission-Accredited Organizations Effective January 1, 2003, accredited health care organizations across the United States will be required to focus attention on a series of specific actions to prevent medical mistakes. These actions will help to avoid confusion in identifying patients, miscommunication among caregivers, wrong-site surgery, unsafe use of infusion pumps, medication mix-ups, and problems with equipment alarm systems. The required actions are set forth in new National Patient Safety Goals that were developed by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations . . .