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Development of a Web-based Event Reporting System in an Academic Environment

Affiliation of the authors: The Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH.

Correspondence and reprints: Hagop S. Mekhjian, MD, Professor of Internal Medicine, Associate Vice President for Health Sciences, Chief Medical Officer, 130 Doan Hall, 410 West 10^th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210; e-mail: <mekhjian-1{at}medctr.osu.edu>.

Received for publication: 02/28/03; accepted for publication: 09/17/03.

In pursuit of a strategy for patient safety and error reduction, The Ohio State University Health System developed and implemented a standardized voluntary event reporting system. The Web-based application is user friendly as well as context-sensitive and encompasses a broad range of errors, events, and near misses. A full organizational transformation was required to effectively implement the system, which involved process reengineering for event entry and for postentry automated workflows. This system serves as the foundation for efficient and consistent reporting processes, which are essential for encouraging a culture of commitment to patient safety.