EDMONTON, Alberta and OTTAWA, Oct. 23, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- At some point, every one of us will be a patient in the healthcare system. What most Canadians don’t realize, is that 28,000 of us die from preventable harm when receiving care, every single year.
This makes patient safety incidents the third leading cause of death in Canada, behind cancer and heart disease. One in three Canadians has had patient harm affect themselves or a loved one, yet the public is collectively unaware that the problem exists. This is a silent epidemic. If we do nothing, 1.2 million Canadians will die from preventable patient harm in the next 30 years.
“Many Canadians believe we have the safest healthcare in the world,” says Canadian Patient Safety Institute’s CEO Chris Power. “However, we have a way to go. A July 2017 report reveals that Canada’s healthcare record ranks 9th out of 11 western countries; a score that includes quality and patient safety measures. We can change that. We must change that.”
Every year, the Canadian Patient Safety Institute’s (CPSI) goal is that Canadian Patient Safety Week inspires extraordinary improvement in patient safety and quality. Working together, thousands of healthcare professionals, patients, and families can spread the message to create a safer healthcare system. With this year’s Canadian Patient Safety Week, October 28 to November 1, we ask you to help us #ConquerSilence!
This silence exists between patients and providers, between colleagues in healthcare facilities, between administrators in different regions, and between the public and policymakers. We want to teach Canadians that if something looks wrong, feels wrong, or is wrong – we need to speak up, in the moment. By conquering silence, we can begin to work together to solve the healthcare issues we face.
Join us in spreading this message. Speak up for patient safety. Watch for Toronto’s CN Tower and Edmonton’s High Level Bridge to light up orange for patient safety on Monday, October 28!
Be sure to take full advantage of all the activities during Canadian Patient Safety Week, from October 28 to November 1:
- Join our bold new campaign to #ConquerSilence! Share your story of healthcare harm and your advice to help others learn from your experience conquersilence.ca.
- Download a brand new episode of our award-winning PATIENT podcast at patientsafetyweek.ca! We will ask patients, providers, and leaders how they are conquering silence and what you can do to stay safe.
- Healthcare providers and administrators can attend webinars to show how they can #ConquerSilence, and how the Protecting Canadians from Unsafe Drugs Act will affect them. Find out more at patientsafetyweek.ca.
Please note that CPSI is expanding our focus on patient safety far beyond Canadian Patient Safety Week! Our #ConquerSilence campaign will run all year: we will share stories and tools that you can use to help keep yourself and your patients safer. From medication safety to infection prevention and control, we will feature a different topic every two months and invite you to help #ConquerSilence together.
CPSI would like to thank Gojo Industries and HealthPRO for their support of Canadian Patient Safety Week.
Contact:
Christopher Thrall
Canadian Patient Safety Institute
cthrall@cpsi-icsp.ca
7805668375
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2e3d20b1-9629-4082-82d5-6595ba76400d