World Health Organization Partners with Joint Commission, Joint Commission International to Eliminate Medical Errors Worldwide

News Advisory:

WHAT: News conference (telephone dial-in available) to announce the collaboration between the World Health Organization, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and Joint Commission International to reduce the unacceptably high numbers of serious medical errors occurring around the world each day.

WHY: Health care errors seriously harm one in every 10 patients worldwide. Working together, WHO and the Joint Commission will focus worldwide attention on patient safety solutions and best practices that can reduce safety risks to patients, and coordinate international efforts to share these solutions.

WHEN: Tuesday, August 23, 11:30 a.m. Eastern/10:30 a.m. Central/8:30 a.m. Pacific

WHERE: National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW, 13th Floor, Zenger Room, Washington, D.C., or dial 800-362-0574, ID code: JCAHO, to participate via telephone.

Lunch will be available on site.

WHO:

-- Fred L. Brown, chairman, board of commissioners, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations

-- Sir Liam Donaldson, M.D., chair, World Health Alliance for Patient Safety, World Health Organization and Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, United Kingdom

-- Dennis S. O’Leary, M.D., president, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations

-- Karen H. Timmons, president and CEO, Joint Commission International

-- Mirta Roses Periago, M.D., director, Pan American Health Organization

-- Marty Hatlie, J.D., president, Partnership for Patient Safety

-- Peter Angood, M.D., chief patient safety officer, Joint Commission International Center for Patient Safety

The World Health Organization (WHO) is the United Nations specialized agency for health. It was established on April 7, 1948. WHO’s objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO’s Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

Founded in 1951, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations seeks to continuously improve the safety and quality of care provided to the public through the provision of health care accreditation and related services that support performance improvement in health care organizations.

Joint Commission International (JCI), a division of Joint Commission Resources, Inc., is a wholly controlled not-for-profit affiliate of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations to provide leadership in international health care accreditation and quality improvement.

Contact Information

Agnes Leotsakos

Media Contact

World Health Organization

Contact via E-mail