Development of a Web-Based Patient Safety Resource: AHRQ Patient Safety Network (PSNet)

Since the Institute of Medicine released its To Err Is Human report, published research and other activities related to patient safety have increased substantially. Interested stakeholders now require a resource to stay abreast of the latest news and findings. Under contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), we developed a comprehensive and continuously updated Web-based portal to address this need. The AHRQ Patient Safety Network (AHRQ PSNet), launched in April 2005, features weekly updates of annotated resources, a collection of patient safety “classics,” and opportunities for users to receive weekly updates and create their own “My PSNet” option. As of July 2007, the site has more than 6,500 subscribers to the weekly newsletter and receives approximately 1.5 million yearly visits. We anticipate that the AHRQ PSNet will continue to provide important and updated safety information to a diverse array of users and to leverage the reach and scalability of the Internet. Introduction The landmark Institute of Medicine report, To Err Is Human, increased public awareness about patient safety and catalyzed efforts to reduce medical errors. The number of stakeholders— providers, administrators, legislators, regulators, payers, and patients—continues to grow. Advances are also evidenced by the rapid growth of published research, the development of practical toolkits and educational curricula, the creation of safety-specific journals, and the availability of dedicated patient safety conferences. A resulting challenge is to stay abreast of the latest patient safety literature and news. Whereas certain fields (e.g., cardiology or critical care) allow their “experts” to remain updated through a relatively narrow set of journals and conferences, patient safety experts span a variety of disparate fields. A clinician, researcher, educator, administrator, or policymaker trying to stay updated in the field might need to read a wide range of general and specialty journals in medicine, nursing, and pharmacy, as well as human factors, informatics, health policy, and law. Recognizing the need for a comprehensive information resource for those working in patient safety, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) in July 2004 to create a “one-stop” Web-based resource for the patient safety community. Our editorial team—which comprised physicians with a strong interest and track record in patient safety and medical education, the managing editor for AHRQ Morbidity & Mortality Rounds on the Web (AHRQ WebM&M), and a library scientist and cybrarian with expertise in