International Journal for Quality in Health Care Advance Access originally published online on August 20, 2008
International Journal for Quality in Health Care 2008 20(5):305-307; doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzn034
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© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care; all rights reserved
Editorial |
The Council of Europe recommendation Rec(2006)7 on management of patient safety and prevention of adverse events in health care
E-mail: eic-ijqhc@hcuge.ch
| The first 10% of the full text of this article appears below. |
Among the various national and international initiatives to promote patient safety that have emerged in recent years, one has remained confidential, almost invisible—the Council of Europe Recommendation Rec(2006)7 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on the management of patient safety and prevention of adverse events in health care [1]. I believe that this is unfortunate, as this recommendation may stimulate progress in patient safety, but only if ‘member states’ are listening. The aim of this editorial is to get the readers of the journal to read, critique and discuss this document—better yet, to use it.
The recommendation outlines a comprehensive policy to improve patient safety, intended for implementation at the national level, but with a clear intent to foster international collaboration in this area. Although it is not a legally binding