HARRISBURG: The Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority launched its new website and design today featuring an enhanced search engine with easier navigation and features allowing users to share patient safety information more easily.

The new site www.patientsafetyauthority.org also features a new tagline of the Authority “Analyzing, Educating and Collaborating for Patient Safety.” It also showcases the data collected by the Patient Safety Authority providing healthcare providers with a wealth of information received by Pennsylvania healthcare facilities through the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System (PA-PSRS).

“The new design offers patient safety officers an easier route to get to the important healthcare information they need to improve patient safety in their facilities,” Mike Doering, executive director of the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority said. “The Authority offers many educational tools for facilities to use to make process changes in their facilities to prevent medical errors.

“This new site also makes it easier for them to share the information we’ve collected and analyzed from events happening in Pennsylvania healthcare facilities,” Doering added. “Consumers can also find information on the website more easily to help educate them on what they can do to decrease the likelihood of a medical error happening to them.”

Doering said specifically the improved site makes it easier for users to find and distribute information in the following ways:

• Offers Pennsylvania-based healthcare information that is easier to read and find online with an enhanced search engine;
• Gives immediate access to the most recent information from the homepage featuring a spotlight section of
  “What’s New”;
• Allows users to browse by topic hundreds of Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory articles;
• Provides users with the means to distribute important Pennsylvania patient safety information through an “e-mail-to-a-friend” feature; and
• Offers a vast collection of educational tools and resources for healthcare providers and community groups to improve patient safety in Pennsylvania healthcare facilities.

“The Patient Safety Authority has gathered valuable information since reporting began in June two thousand and four,” Doering said. “This new website design makes it easier for people to learn more about what we’ve collected and how they can improve healthcare in Pennsylvania either for themselves or their healthcare facility.”

For more information on the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, visit the Authority’s website at www.patientsafetyauthority.org.