Washington State Governor Outlines Provisions Of $7.9M Patient Safety Proposal

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Article Date: 19 Dec 2007 - 10:00 PDT

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Washington state Gov. Chris Gregoire (D) on Friday announced provisions of a $7.9 million plan to improve patient safety, including the development of an online database that would allow physicians and pharmacists to monitor what medications patients are taking, the Spokane Spokesman-Review reports. The plan represents a portion of the $1 billion Gregoire has proposed spending on health care in fiscal year 2008. Other provisions of the plan include:

• $3 million to help pay for some hospital workers who want to train to become registered nurses;
  
  
• $2 million to investigate complaints against providers and to reduce the backlog of such cases;
  
  
• $930,000 to improve the state's ability to complete criminal background checks on all out-of-state applicants for health care positions; and
  
  
• $560,000 to reform state licensing standards for counselors.
  

Mike Wilson, president of Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, Wash., said, "All of these are things that can help patients." Funding for the program would come from the state's $1.4 billion surplus. Gregoire said she also would push for complete public access to hospitals' patient safety records. Hospitals previously had disclosed the information, but the Washington State Department of Health abandoned the practice earlier this year (Stucke, Spokane Spokesman-Review, 12/15).

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