Hospitals Collaborate to Prevent Wrong-Site Surgery

By Kathryn M. Pelczarski, BS; Pamela A. Braun, RN, MSN; Eileen Young, MSN, RN

The wrong-site surgery prevention program is one of numerous patient safety initiatives undertaken collaboratively by hospitals in the Greater Philadelphia region since 2006 under the direction of the Partnership for Patient Care (PPC). Primarily funded by Independence Blue Cross and the hospital community, PPC’s goal is to accelerate the adoption of evidence-based clinical practices by pooling the resources, knowledge, and efforts of healthcare providers and other stakeholders. The PPC is led by HealthCare Improvement Foundation (HCIF), an independent non-profit organization promoting innovative efforts to improve health services and the enhancement of public trust and confidence in the region’s health care systems. HCIF partnered with ECRI Institute, a non-profit organization researching best practices to improve patient care, to facilitate the collaborative’s shared approach.

The partnership has made a meaningful difference in improving patient safety in the Greater Philadelphia area. Building on the success of previous PPC initiatives where improvement was demonstrated through a collaborative effort, the wrong-site surgery prevention initiative adopted an approach in which participating organizations share common goals, apply interventions shown to improve performance, and share experiences with one another.

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