Every day, millions of people place their lives in the hands of healthcare providers. They walk into hospitals expecting healing, not harm. Yet, medical errors remain one of the leading causes of death globally, a sobering reality that challenges the very foundation of medicine: "First, do no harm."
Despite the dedication of clinicians and caregivers, patient safety remains a silent crisis. It's time we gave it the attention—and the action—it desperately deserves.
The Hidden Epidemic: Preventable Harm in Healthcare
According to a comprehensive study published in The BMJ, medical errors may be responsible for as many as 250,000 deaths annually in the United States alone, making them the third leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that one in every ten patients is harmed while receiving hospital care in high-income countries, with nearly half of those incidents deemed preventable.
These aren't just numbers, they represent mothers, fathers, children, and friends who suffered complications, endured unnecessary procedures, or lost their lives due to errors that could have been avoided. From medication mistakes and diagnostic inaccuracies to unsafe surgical procedures and infections, the risks are pervasive, and the stakes are devastating.
Systemic Gaps: A Matter of Culture, Not Competence
Contrary to the sensationalism of malpractice narratives, most medical errors are not the result of incompetence. They are systemic in nature, caused by communication breakdowns, outdated protocols, understaffing, burnout, and the absence of standardized safety practices. Healthcare professionals often operate in an ecosystem that often prioritizes speed and volume over reflection and vigilance.
What's needed is not just better-trained doctors, but better-designed systems. Safety must be woven into the DNA of healthcare institutions, through robust reporting mechanisms, safety checklists, open disclosure policies, and most critically, a culture that values learning over blame.
Advocacy in Action: The Patient Safety Movement Foundation
Recognizing that the status quo was costing too many lives, entrepreneur and medical technology innovator Joe Kiani founded the Patient Safety Movement Foundation (PSMF) in 2012. With an ambitious and human-centered mission—zero preventable deaths by 2030—PSMF has galvanized healthcare providers, policymakers, patients, and families to advocate for transparent, data-driven solutions.
What sets the foundation apart is its commitment to Actionable Patient Safety Solutions (APSS)—evidence-based protocols that hospitals can adopt to improve safety across a wide range of high-risk areas, from opioid safety and sepsis management to maternal and neonatal care. The PSMF also promotes the Open Data Pledge, encouraging healthcare technology companies to share data that can illuminate, and eliminate, risks.
Its impact is palpable: through its coalition-building and educational initiatives, PSMF has helped catalyze real-world improvements in hundreds of healthcare facilities worldwide.
Safety as a Human Right, Not a Privilege
At its core, patient safety is not a technical goal—it is a moral imperative. Healthcare should be as safe as flying in an airplane or driving a car, and yet we've accepted far greater risks in our hospitals than we ever would in our skies or streets.
We must reframe patient safety not as an add-on or afterthought, but as a non-negotiable pillar of quality care. This requires investment, leadership, and cultural change—not only from healthcare institutions but from regulators, insurers, and governments. And it requires patients and families to have a seat at the table, empowered to speak up without fear of judgment or dismissal.
The Path Forward
There is no silver bullet—but there is a clear path. We know what works: transparency, communication, systems thinking, and accountability. We know that when healthcare professionals are supported instead of blamed, when data is shared instead of siloed, and when patients are heard instead of ignored, lives are saved.
In a world that spends trillions on medical innovation, we owe it to ourselves—and to every patient who enters a hospital hoping for healing—to make safety our most urgent priority.
As the Patient Safety Movement Foundation reminds us: every patient deserves safe care, every time. Nothing less should be acceptable.
