BY ECRI PRESIDENT AND CEO, DR. MARCUS SCHABACKER, MD, PHD

This World Patient Safety Day, I’m reflecting on our healthcare industry’s progress – and shortfalls – in safety and quality.

We are hopeful that through new thinking, new strategies, a heightened sense of urgency, and a renewed commitment by all – government, providers, clinicians, patients, advocacy groups and independent patient safety and research groups such as ECRI – we can finally make measurable progress to ensure safe and effective healthcare is available for all.

Many of the healthcare leaders we serve are experiencing despair, fear, uncertainty and worry about the future of healthcare…

Despair about the dismantling of key government agencies that, for decades, provided critical guidance as beacons of truth…

Uncertainty about what the funding cuts to Medicare and Medicaid will entail for thousands of rural and community-based hospitals, clinics and their patients…

Fear about the long-term health implications for minorities, such as women, people of color, disabled patients, veterans and other communities who have consistently worse access to, and outcomes from, medical care…

And worry about how we can, in this new world, fulfill our oath to “do no harm.”

But there is still hope, because there are hundreds of thousands of clinicians, patient advocates, administrators, therapists, technicians, lab workers, and many others who go to work each day because they care. They want to make a difference. They want to heal and be a beacon of hope for patients who are hurt, ill, and in need of a helping hand.

I’m hopeful about the future because of the determination and compassion of the people who power healthcare. We have an unshakeable commitment to make healthcare better, and the grit to find new ways to ensure we provide the best care that is evidence-based, effective, and accessible to all.

We at ECRI will continue to serve those who care, as we have for more than six decades, as the most trusted, independent voice in healthcare. We thank all of you who have dedicated your lives to healing; you are not alone.