BOSTON, Mass., March 31, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) has announced the agenda for a full-day educational program focusing on improving patient and family engagement in health care. Sharing and Caring: Practical Initiatives for Advancing Patient and Family Engagement is being offered as one of the Pre-Congress programs during the 17th annual NPSF Patient Safety Congress, which takes place April 29-May 1, 2015, in Austin, Texas.
In a 2013 report, the NPSF Lucian Leape Institute cites patient and family engagement as a vital component of safe care. This Pre-Congress program will specifically address two tactics designed to enhance patient and family engagement: shared decision making and patient and family advisory councils (PFACs).
Shared decision making is a process that allows patients, families, and clinicians to make care plan decisions together, based on the known risks and benefits of treatment options, as well as the patient's values, goals, and preferences. The Pre-Congress program will look at opportunities and strategies to use shared decision making to improve safety and health care quality.
"We see shared decision making as a key pathway to safe, patient-centered care," said Richard Wexler, MD. "Patients need to understand their options before making decisions with their providers about the care they receive. Otherwise, they may receive care and incur risks that they really don't want."
Dr. Wexler, chief clinical integration officer at Healthwise, is serving as co-chair of the program along with his colleague, Ben Moulton, JD, MPH, senior vice president for advocacy and policy at Healthwise.
The second half of this interactive program will focus on creating and utilizing PFACs, as well as how to begin including families in important activities, such as clinical rounds in the hospital. The content is relevant to patients, patient advocates, front-line clinicians, and patient safety leaders.
"We are thrilled to have such a distinguished faculty to present at this year's patient and family Pre-Congress program," said Tejal Gandhi, MD, MPH, CPPS, president and CEO, National Patient Safety Foundation. "These topics are vitally important for anyone providing direct care to patients and families, and I believe our attendees will find the content useful and enriching to their own practice."
A limited number of press passes is available. Contact Patricia McTiernan at pmctiernan@npsf.org for details. For further information about this and other Pre-Congress programs, and to register, visit npsf.org/congress.
About the National Patient Safety Foundation
The National Patient Safety Foundation's vision is to create a world where patients and those who care for them are free from harm. A central voice for patient safety since 1997, NPSF partners with patients and families, the health care community, and key stakeholders to advance patient safety and health care workforce safety and disseminate strategies to prevent harm. NPSF is an independent, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. To learn more about the Foundation's work, visit www.npsf.org.