Texas Institute for Patient Safety Takes Aim at Medical Students

New collaborative effort will focus on incorporating patent safety into medical school.

In May, the University of North Texas (UNT) Health and Science Center announced a new collaborative aimed at improving patient care throughout the state and reducing medical errors across the continuum of care.

The Institute of Patient Safety was launched with the help of $4 million in state funding. Along with three other founding members, Texas Christian University, JPS Health Network, and Cook Children’s Medical Center, the institute will focus on three specific areas of care:

• Ambulatory care settings
• Geriatric care
• Precision medicine, including adverse drug events, appropriate use of antibiotics, and drug dependence

But the institute also plans to target an often overlooked subset of caregivers: medical students. By incorporating patient safety and quality improvement into the medical school curriculums, the institute will attempt to shift the culture of healthcare beginning with the next generation of clinicians.

This is an excerpt from Patient Safety Monitor Journal. Subscribers can read the full article here. Find out more about the journal, its benefits, and how to subscribe by clicking here.