The Latest Reports on Health Policy

• "A Series on Patient Safety," New England Journal of Medicine: In an article in the Oct. 17 NEJM, Dr. Lucian Leape of the Harvard School of Public Health and colleagues outline the history of efforts to reduce medical errors over the last 20 years, focusing in particular on an Institute of Medicine report on patient safety released a couple years ago. The article announces the start of a series on patient safety to be published in NEJM that will examine "key issues" in patient safety, such as infection control, reporting and responding to adverse events, the role of information technology in reducing errors and malpractice (Leape et al., New England Journal of Medicine, 10/17).
  
• "Fatigue Among Clinicians and the Safety of Patients," New England Journal of Medicine: Dr. David Gaba of the Patient Safety Center of Inquiry at Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System and Dr. Steven Howard of Stanford University School of Medicine examine "current and proposed policies concerning clinicians' work hours and fatigue" in an Oct. 17 NEJM article. The article looks at whether doctors' fatigue affects performance and whether the system that contributes to such fatigue should be altered (Gaba/Howard, New England Journal of Medicine, 10/17).


• "Cutting Back But Not Cutting Out," Center for Studying Health System Change: HSC researchers conducted site visits at small businesses in 12 communities nationwide in 2000 and early 2001 to complete the brief, which found that small business experienced on average a 14.5% increase in health premiums, compared with 10.2% for business with 200 or more employees (HSC, "Cutting Back But Not Cutting Out," October 2002).


• "The Role of Health Insurance Brokers," HSC: A second HSC issue brief found that insurance brokers can provide "valuable services" in assisting small employers obtain health coverage, including explaining benefits to employees and resolving claims disputes with insurers. Brokers also can educate employers and workers about public insurance programs and state policy initiatives to expand coverage, according to the study (HSC release, 10/15).