AHRQ Patient Safety Network: Patient Safety in Private Hospitals: the Known and the Unknown Risk.

AHRQ Patient Safety Network



Patient Safety in Private Hospitals: the Known and the Unknown Risk.

Leys C, Toft B. London, UK: Centre for Health and the Public Interest; August 2014.

This report discusses issues with staffing, equipment, and documentation that contributed to patient harm in private hospitals in the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2014. The authors explain how limited reporting requirements and lack of reliable data hinders patients' ability to compare the care provided by private hospitals with National Health System hospitals. They also outline recommendations to augment data collection and transparency in private hospitals.

Free full text (PDF) 
Related information 
Related news article 

Related Resources

STUDY

Adverse event rates as measures of hospital performance.

Hauck K, Zhao X, Jackson T. Health Policy. 2012;104:146-154.

COMMENTARY

The long road to ensuring patient safety in NHS hospitals.

Dyer C. BMJ. 2013;346:f3029.

STUDY

National trends in patient safety for four common conditions, 2005–2011.

Wang Y, Eldridge N. Metersky ML, et al. N Engl J Med. 2014;370:341-351.

COMMENTARY

Early warnings, weak signals and learning from healthcare disasters.

Macrae C. BMJ Qual Saf. 2014;23;440-445.

View all related resources...