Lucian L. Leape

2021

The Story of the Patient Safety Movement

In late1999, Americans were shocked to learn that the number of patients dying in hospitals from medical errors was the equivalent of the crash of a jumbo jet each day. Some experts even said it was twice that many. The response was immediate. Government, hospitals, professional organizations, regulators, and researchers mobilized in a massive effort to reduce medical injury. This is the story of what happened.