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ADDRESS:
Patient Safety Authority
333 Market Street
Lobby Level
Harrisburg, PA 17120


Phone: 717-346-0469
Fax: 717-346-1090


  
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Patient Safety Authority Loses a Founding Leader
Pa Patient Saf Advis 2009 Mar;6(1):2. 
 

Alan B.K. Rabinowitz

 

 

 

 

Alan B.K. Rabinowitz, first
administrator of the Pennsylvania
Patient Safety Authority

Alan B.K. Rabinowitz, the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority’s first administrator, lost his battle with cancer Friday, February 6, 2009.

Alan was appointed the first administrator of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority in November 2002. Under his tenure, the Authority garnered national recognition and won the prestigious 2006 John Eisenberg Award for advancing patient safety and quality, given jointly by the National Quality Forum and the Joint Commission.

As the first employee of the Authority, Alan also paved the way in the development and implementation of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System (PA-PSRS) and initiated publication of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory. Articles in the Advisory have garnered national attention and brought issues such as wrong-site surgery and standardizing color-coded wristbands to the forefront of the healthcare industry.

“Alan was passionate about making sure the Patient Safety Authority did all it could to protect patients in Pennsylvania,” said Dr. Robert Muscalus, former chair of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority Board of Directors.

Before his appointment as administrator, Alan spent more than seven years as chief of staff in the Pennsylvania Department of Health. He previously worked in the private sector and, from 1979 through 1987, was on the personal staff of Governor Dick Thornburgh.

Alan’s dedication to public service and in particular to the Patient Safety Authority is unmatched. His passion for helping others carried over into his personal life through his kind contributions to the Hospice of Central Pennsylvania, where he prepared and delivered elaborate full-course meals to the residents and their families for holidays and special occasions each year.

“Alan was a very special man who gave so freely of his talents,” said Susan Resavy, director of family services at the Hospice of Central Pennsylvania. “He called us several years ago offering to prepare and deliver meals. He would travel anywhere we asked him to. He touched so many people’s lives at a difficult time for them.”

As the Authority continues to educate the healthcare facilities through the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory and other educational resources, Alan’s efforts are remembered often by me and other Authority staff for building the strong foundation that the organization rests upon. He will be greatly missed.

Memorial contributions may be made in Alan’s honor to Hospice of Central Pennsylvania, PO Box 266, Enola, PA 17025.

Michael Doering, MBA
Executive Director
Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority
 
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Patient Safety Authority Looses a Founding Leader



THE PENNSYLVANIA PATIENT SAFETY AUTHORITY AND ITS CONTRACTORS  
PSA LOGO The Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority is an independent state agency created by Act 13 of 2002, the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (“Mcare”) Act. Consistent with Act 13, ECRI Institute, as contractor for the Authority, is issuing this publication to advise medical facilities of immediate changes that can be instituted to reduce Serious Events and Incidents. For more information about the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, see the Authority’s Web site at www.patientsafetyauthority.org .      
ECRI LOGO ECRI Institute, a nonprofit organization, dedicates itself to bringing the discipline of applied scientific research in healthcare to uncover the best approaches to improving patient care. As pioneers in this science for more than 40 years, ECRI Institute marries experience and independence with the objectivity of evidence-based research. More than 5,000 healthcare organizations worldwide rely on ECRI Institute’s expertise in patient safety improvement, risk and quality management, and healthcare processes, devices, procedures and drug technology.      

ISMP Logo The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated solely to medication error prevention and safe medication use. ISMP provides recommendations for the safe use of medications to the healthcare community including healthcare professionals, government agencies, accrediting organizations, and consumers. ISMP’s efforts are built on a nonpunitive approach and systems-based solutions.      
 
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