A comprehensive grassroots model for statewide safety improvement.

BACKGROUND: The Maryland Patient Safety Center (MPSC) a collaboration of the Maryland Hospital Association and Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care, Inc., was designated by the State of Maryland in June 2004. A voluntary, nonregulatory initiative, the MPSC complements the state's regulatory efforts in mandatory reporting and support for performance improvement. PROGRAMS: The MPSC's mission is to bring health care providers together to understand causes of unsafe practices and to put practical, evidence-based improvements in place. Using a multifaceted approach, the MPSC implements its mission through education and training, safety culture collaboratives, adverse-event and near-miss reporting, research, and special projects. Participation in these initiatives is provided at no cost to Maryland providers. Early results show that health care leaders and front-line workers are embracing the MPSC's vision to make Maryland's health care the safest in the nation. More than 2,500 health care providers have participated in the MPSC's programs in its 15 months. Eighty percent of the state's hospitals are taking part in the intensive care unit (ICU) Safety Culture Collaborative, which has already yielded a 36% decrease in catheter-related blood stream infections and a 20% decrease in ventilator-associated pneumonia. A MODEL FOR OTHER STATES: The MPSC's approach can serve as a model for other states to emulate.