Introducing the Partnership for Patients with Sorrel King

Introducing the Partnership for Patients with Sorrel King

Sorrel King: In 24 hours we’d gone from planning a welcome home celebration, to planning a funeral. It turned our lives upside down. Two emotions overtook us: grief and anger.

Sorrel King: Josie was 18 months old, the youngest of 4, she was taken to the hospital, after suffering from 1st and 2nd degree burns from climbing into a hot bath and was in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. She was healing beautifully, her doctor came and took out her central line and said, told us, we were going home in 2 days.

Graphic: The hospital staff neglected to hydrate Josie. They gave her a narcotic injection against doctor's orders.

Sorrel King: So they gave Josie the medication, and then next time I looked at Josie she was out. They told us we needed to pray. The next morning, a team of neurologists came and examined her and they said she's brain dead, she's not going to survive. We said goodbye to Josie, we took her off life support and we held her for the last time as she died. Sorrel on camera roll empty hospital bed Sorrel King: If the residents had noticed her weight had dropped in 24 hours, she'd be alive. If she'd gotten a drink of water, she'd be alive. If she hadn't gotten the methadone, she'd be alive. She died from a breakdown in the system, she died from a breakdown in communications.

Sorrel King: 8 months later Hopkins offered us a settlement, they offered us money for the death of our daughter. After we learned about the deaths from medical errors and how many people die, it was very clear, we knew we were going to create a foundation, the Josie King Foundation, our mission was pure and simple, we were gonna do whatever we could to prevent patients dying from medical errors. And that was 10 years ago.

Graphic: Partnership for Patients: Better Care, Lower Costs

SORREL KING: IT IS TIME TO ALL COME TOGETHER, PATIENTS AND FAMILIES, HOSPITALS, DOCTORS AND NURSES, THE GOVERNMENT, THE INSURANCE COMPANIES, BUSINESSES, WE’VE GOT TO COME TOGETHER AND WE'VE GOT TO DO IT AND WE'VE GOT TO DO IT NOW AND WE CANNOT KEEP GOING AT THE PACE WE’VE BEEN GOING.

Graphic: Recent studies show that, on average, 1 in 3, hospital patients suffer a medical error or adverse event. On April 12, 2011, the Dept. of Human Services initiated a nationwide effort to address this problem.

SECRETARY SEBELIUS: TODAY WE’RE ANNOUNCING THE NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR PATIENTS THAT WILL BRING TOGETHER HOSPITALS, PHYSICIANS, NURSES, EMPLOYERS, UNIONS, PATIENT ADVOCATES, HEALTH PLANS AND OTHERS TO IMPROVE THE SAFETY OF HEALTHCARE IN AMERICA. NOW TO GET STARTED, WE ARE SETTING TWO AMBITIOUS GOALS FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS. FIRST WE’RE COMMITTED TO REDUCING PREVENTIBLE INJURIES THAT HAPPEN IN HOSPITALS BY 40%. THAT WOULD PREVENT 1.8 MILLION INJURIES AND SAVE 60,000 LIVES ACROSS THIS COUNTRY. SECONDLY, IS TO CUT / HOSPITAL READMISSIONS BY 20%. SAVING MORE THAN 1.6 MILLION PATIENTS FROM COMPLICATIONS THAT FORCE THEM TO RETURN TO THE HOSPITAL. DON BERWICK: THE PARTNERSHIP FOR PATIENTS WILL BE REACHING OUT. PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PARTNERS TOGETHER, TO HELP HOSPITALS AND THEIR STAFFS LEARN HOW TO MAKE CARE SAFER AND TO ADOPT THE BEST KNOWN PRACTICES AS QUICKLY AS THEY POSSIBLY CAN, AND TO ADAPT THEM INTO THEIR LOCAL CIRCUMSTANCES. SECRETARY SEBELIUS: AND THAT'S WHY WE’RE ANNOUNCING TODAY THAT WE’LL COMMIT UP TO A BILLION DOLLARS IN NEW FUNDING FROM THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT TOWARDS THOSE TWO INITIAL GOALS.

Graphic: * Reaching these goals will save lives and save the US health care system as much as $35 billion in 3 years up to $10 billion in Medicare costs alone.

SECRETARY SEBELIUS: I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS ACROSS THIS ROOM AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO WORK TOWARD THE DAY WHEN NO PATIENT HAS TO GO THROUGH WHAT SORREL AND HER HUSBAND DID EVER AGAIN.

Graphic: Denver Health, Virginia Mason Medical Center 

Sorrel King: A lot of hospitals are doing really great things. I think we are safer, and we’re moving in the right direction. Partnership for Patients is going to help push it over to the next level.

Graphic: A series of slates with alphabetized list of high-profile organizations with photo of Josie as of May 13, noted with some of the Pledge signers. Partnership for Patients: AARP, Aetna, AFL-CIO, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, The American College of Physicians, The American Hospital Association, The American Medical Association, The American Nurses Association, America s Health Insurance Plans, Blue Cross Blue Shield, CalPERS, Campaign for Better Care, Catholic Health Association, Denver Health, The Dept. of Veterans Affairs, Dow Chemical Corporation, General Electric, Honeywell, The Hospital Corporation of America, Johnson & Johnson, The Josie King Foundation, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, The Mayo System, National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems, The National Patient Safety Foundation, Starbucks Corporation, UAW, Retiree Medical Benefits Trust, UNITE HERE HEALTH, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Mason Hospital and Medical Center, Walmart, Xerox Corporation.

Graphic: Partnership for Patients Better Care, Lower Costs *For more information, go to: http://www.HealthCare.gov/partnershipforpatients