The Northwest Patient Safety Conference: keeping safety current

摘要

Purpose - This article aims to describe the history of an annual regional conference devoted to patient safety, and presents highlights from its tenth annual event, held in May 2012. Design/methodology/approach - The paper presents a historical narrative description of major themes in the annual conferences, with more detailed description of major presentations in the 2012 conference. Findings - The conference has provided topics and speakers to the community, reflecting changing national trends and priorities, and has helped develop an important resource, the Washington Patient Safety Coalition. Practical implications - The history reflects evolving North American concerns about quality of care and patient safety issues; the most recent presentations highlight recent achievements, current challenges, and provide insights from a broad range of settings. Originality/value - This conference is the flagship activity of a state-wide, voluntary coalition and provides an example of a major event bringing value to a diverse set of patient safety and quality improvement professionals.