Presenter: Debbie Graham, MSPH for Susan Dovey, PhD
Institution: American Academy of Family Physicians
Co-Authors: Bob Phillips, MD, MSPH, Larry Green, MD, John Hickner, MD, MS
Introduction: Until recently, most patient safety research has been undertaken in hospitals so descriptions (taxonomies) have omitted important aspects of primary care delivery.
Aim: The presentations will trace the development of the AAFP/LINNAEUS Collaboration Taxonomy of Threats to Patient Safety Care.
Methods: Medical errors descriptions from the patient safety research projects will be discussed. The unique contributions of each country, and each type of healthcare participant (physicians, patients, practice staff) will be presented.
Results: The first project contributed 54 descriptions of different error types, the second (international) study added more than 300 different error types, and the third and fourth studies (incorporating reports from patients and practice staff as well as physicians) contributed a further 200 error descriptions. The current taxonomy contains more than 500 codes describing different types of medical errors that happen in primary care practices, organized in a five-tier hierarchy. Additional sections of the taxonomy provide codes for more than 200 Contributing Factors, more than 100 different preventive strategies, and over 40 different types of consequences to patients, physicians, staff, and health systems generally.
Discussion: The current taxonomy is a useful tool for defining and categorizing medical errors in ambulatory primary care settings. It includes contributions from all health care participants in this setting in the United States and 6 other countries, suggesting it is a robust research instrument.
Developing a Patient Safety Taxonomy for Ambulatory Primary Care Settings
