Actor Dennis Quaid has produced an outstanding, informative, empowering and motivating CME* program, “Chasing Zero: Winning the War on Healthcare Harm.” It’s on the Discovery Channel. Part 1 is here.
This is the best-produced material I’ve seen to change how so much of the healthcare industry has its head in the sand about the possibility of change. It’s informative, but it goes beyond that, calling for our leaders to boldly step out and adopt improvements in process and technology that are proven to save lives.
“If our healthcare leaders can get through their denial about their failing systems, it becomes a David & Goliath story. Goliath is fear: fear of shame, fear of malpractice, and fear of cost. To win the war on harm, we must activate the inner David in our hospital leaders.The weapons against healthcare harm are leadership, safe practices and technology.”
And this: “Patients are a part of the healthcare team – an often unused one.”
Some of the stories are hard to watch, but that’s the fear. I ask that you watch: by facing the fear yourself, you model what we’re asking of our leaders. Please, you be a leader too.
* CME=Continuing Medical Education.
I haven’t quite finished watching it but it is really REALLY well done! I think everyone should see this. It’s really frightening how small things can add up to a patient nightmare – or can be life-threatening. And it’s mostly a process issue.
Several Community Empowerment Initiatives will be held throughout Milwaukee that will offer free registration for a personal emergency crisis card. This innovative technology is designed to empower people during a personal medical emergency. The card transmits on demand access to one’s critical medical information stored in a private secure server giving doctors an ability to perform a knowledge-based assessment and evidence-based intervention. This digital technology is a consumer-driven model that will help people avoid medical errors and unnecessary medical expenses in the emergency rooms. 7,000 deaths AND 195,000 reported medical errors occur annually in our health care system. This is unacceptable. (Institute on Medicine Report)
May 3, 2010
I’ve yet to see the film but know much about it; by experience.
I have chronic lightheadedness with ‘snowy’ vision. MRI is positive for brain lesions increasing in number but not size. I have hundreds of medical reports documenting my experience.
I’ve been to hundreds of doctors since 1991. Because doctors made mistakes in the beginning, they will not diagnose me because they don’t want to embarrass their collegues or the American medical profession. They like the money and the power too. I guesstimate that my ins. co. has paid out about $750,000.00 since 1991.
Care to guess why our health ins. premiums are so much?
I’ve attempted to ellicit the help of Dennis Quiad’s foundation…it has merged with TMIT; Texas Medical Institute if Technology…I believe. No help from them.
Folks, it doesn’t look good.
Email me at fair200642@yahoo.com with any suggestions.
If you know Quaid, tell him. He will help me.
Louis
Good Job Dennis Quaid my son’s father was over dosed you are so blessed your twins made it thru. I’m very certain that God has something great in store for your little one’s. It was the experince you had to endure in order to make the medical world better for everyone. When this happen to my son’s father I wasn’t strong enough to do anything. About a year later or longer all kinds of things went thru my mind. I,m shocked this webbsite is not flooding with reaction.
Hospitals continue to make excuses for mistakes made. We don’t want excuses. We want to know the same things won’t continue. Sometimes, a bunch of small mistakes can add up to extra days in the hospital and increased complications.
Well done!!
I’ve got medical problems & my family Dr tries to help me but the specialists I’m sent to don’t. I’ve a high deductible on my insurance & until it’s met the Dr’s I see don’t want to treat me. Now it’s met but still looking for answers on what is wrong w/me. So tired of hearing “it could be this or maybe that but we aren’t sure so we will treat symptoms…” Figure it out! I wanted to go to the Mayo Clinic but my ins refused to let me. Our healthcare system is broken! When patients DO speak up, Dr’s get mad! Not all, but most.