| Patient safety is a major health-policy issue | | | | provides member companies with detailed and |
| that affects every physician. Recent years | | | | credible information for use in risk |
| have seen the growth of a national | | | | management programs, which are aimed at |
| movement-among doctors, patients and even | | | | educating doctors and minimizing the |
| some doctors' medical liability insurance | | | | incidence of patient injury. |
| companies-to improve the healthcare delivery | | | | |
| system and reduce medical errors. | | | | PIAA member companies play a critical role in |
| | | | maximizing patient safety, through the risk |
| The Physician Insurers Association of America | | | | management services they provide to the |
| (PIAA) and its member companies are working | | | | physicians they insure. For example, many |
| to develop patient safety measures that help | | | | have assessment services, which help |
| physicians lower their liability exposure | | | | physicians step back from their daily work |
| while improving the quality of patient care. | | | | and evaluate their own practice-an office |
| This is being accomplished by identifying and | | | | "checkup." This assists doctors in finding |
| eliminating errors in the healthcare system | | | | new ways to improve care. |
| and educating doctors to protect patients | | | | |
| from medical injury. | | | | There is an important difference between the |
| | | | patients who are actually harmed by a medical |
| The PIAA Data Sharing Proj-ect, an ongoing | | | | procedure and those who have an unfortunate |
| claims study, is a major driver in advancing | | | | outcome or are simply unhappy with the |
| patient safety. The Data Sharing Project | | | | results. Most medical procedures, from |
| houses the world's largest research database | | | | coronary bypass surgery to Lasik vision |
| on medical errors. Storing detailed | | | | correction, do involve risk. It is up to the |
| information on more than 240,000 medical and | | | | medical professionals to explain procedures |
| dental claims, the database provides a rich | | | | fully-including the risks. Armed with this |
| resource for the investigation of the | | | | knowledge, the patient can make informed |
| underlying causes and issues pertaining to | | | | decisions and weigh the benefits and risks |
| medical malpractice claims. The project | | | | before he or she signs a consent form. |