October 28, 2013
For immediate release
EDMONTON - Today, the Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of Health, attended the opening of Canada's Virtual Forum on Patient Safety and Quality to kick off Canadian Patient Safety Week and announce $38.1 million over five years in funding for the Canadian Patient Safety Institute (CPSI) to help improve patient safety.
"We all have a role to play when it comes to patient safety," said Minister Ambrose. "Today's announcement will help lead to system wide change, by developing and sharing new knowledge and innovative best practices to reduce harm and improve the care Canadians receive."
The Canadian Patient Safety Institute will lead a new strategy to address key areas that will lead to better and faster improvements in patient safety. The strategy will initially focus on working with partners, including governments, healthcare practitioners and patients, to drive change in medication safety, surgical care safety, infection control and home care safety.
"The Canadian Patient Safety Institute interventions and programs help facilitate awareness, implementation, spread and sustainability of clinical quality improvement activities across all healthcare settings. Our Safer Healthcare Now! interventions reach thousands of Canadians every day, giving healthcare organizations the tools they need to prevent harmful incidents and to measure their progress," says Hugh MacLeod, CEO, CPSI. "We are also particularly proud of our efforts to make sure the needs of patients and their families are front and centre when action is taken on patient safety. Our patient-led program Patients for Patient Safety Canada uses real patient experiences to show the full impact that unsafe care can have on a patient's life."
See attached Fact Sheet for more information on funding for the CPSI.
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