The Institute of Medicine Report on Medical Errors — Could It Do Harm?

The recent Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on the quality of care, entitled “To Err Is Human,” has awakened much of the health care system to the challenge of reducing the number of adverse events in hospitals.1 The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is supporting research on methods of preventing injuries, and private industry is insisting on accountability. Many hospitals and their medical staffs are developing task forces to address the prevention of errors. Insurers and hospital associations are launching similar initiatives.2 Physicians and hospital leaders should welcome all these efforts; for too long we have been complacent about . . .