Written for virtually every professional and leader in the health care field, as well as students who are preparing for careers in health services delivery, this book presents a framework for developing a patient safety program, shows how best to examine events that do occur, and reveals how to ensure that appropriate corrective and preventative actions are reviewed for effectiveness. The book covers a comprehensive selection of topics including

• The link between patient safety and legal and regulatory compliance
• The role of accreditation and standard-setting organizations in patient safety
• Failure modes and effect analysis
• Voluntary and regulatory oversight of medical error
• Evidence-based outcomes and standards of care
• Creation and preservation of reports, data, and device evidence in medical error situations
• Claims management when dealing with patient safety events
• Full disclosure
• Patient safety in human research
• Managing confidentiality in the face of litigation
• Managing patient safety compliance through accountability-based credentialing for health care professionals
• Planning for the future

Fay A. Rozovsky, J.D., M.P.H., is an attorney and experienced risk management professional. An associate clinical professor in the Department of Legal Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine in Richmond, Virginia and an adjunct associate professor of Medical Humanities at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. Ms. Rozovsky is an active member of the JCAHO Professional Technical Advisory Committee for Hospitals.

James R. Woods, Jr., MD is the Henry A. Thiede Professor and Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester, NY. Dr. Woods has authored and co-authored over one hundred forty articles on maternal-fetal medicine, maternal drug addiction, complications of pregnancy and clinical research. His book publications include Pregnancy Loss, Medical Therapeutics and Practical Considerations, and Loss in Pregnancy or in the Newborn Period. Dr. Woods has lectured extensively on loss and grief in the medical setting. He has pioneered strategies for transforming some of the most challenging clinical interactions with patients after adverse outcomes into extraordinary opportunities for compassionate connection between clinicians and their patients and family members.