National Patient Safety Foundation Announces 2012 Patient Safety Awareness Week Campaign

BOSTON, Oct. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- In an effort to raise awareness and encourage the engagement of patients, families, health care providers, and the public, the National Patient Safety Foundation today announced its 2012 Patient Safety Awareness Week campaign, Be Aware for Safe Care.

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Patient Safety Awareness Week will take place March 4-10, 2012. NPSF is the founding sponsor of Patient Safety Awareness Week and has led the event since 2002.

This year's theme highlights the need for everyone to understand the importance of patient safety and to recognize the range of efforts being made to improve health safety in the US and worldwide. Moreover, the campaign seeks to make patients, providers, and the public aware of the ways they can participate in these efforts and partner to improve patient safety. While efforts of the past decade have brought improvements, recent studies indicate that much work remains to be done—and can be done most effectively through the involvement of all parties.

"Be Aware for Safe Care emphasizes the fact that safety issues impact everyone. The more we work together to promote patient safety, the more we all benefit from a safe healthcare system," said Diane C. Pinakiewicz, MBA, president, National Patient Safety Foundation. NPSF encourages creative collaboration among provider groups, patient advocates, and other community organizations to help patients and consumers understand how they can participate to be part of the solution.

The campaign is in alignment with the national Partnership for Patients, a groundbreaking initiative launched earlier this year by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to improve care and reduce costs, in part by reducing all causes of harm in health care.

Patient Safety Awareness Week is recognized internationally. Each year, NPSF produces educational resources for providers, patients, and communities who wish to take part.

Now more than ever in health care, a focus on empowering patients and strengthening patient-provider communications are seen as paramount to reducing errors. We all need to Be Aware for Safe Care.

For more information on Patient Safety Awareness Week visit www.npsf.org.

About the National Patient Safety Foundation®

The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) has been pursuing one mission since its founding in 1997 – to improve the safety of care provided to patients. As a central voice for patient safety, NPSF is committed to a collaborative, inclusive, multi-stakeholder approach in all activities. NPSF is an independent, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. To learn more about the work of the National Patient Safety Foundation, please visit: www.npsf.org.

SOURCE National Patient Safety Foundation