
04.11.2006
Patient
Advocate & Parent of a Child Who Died Due to a Medical Error
Joins Campaign for New Law to Set Safe Limits on Patients Assigned
to RNs
MNA Previews New Radio Ad in Support of H. 2663
John
McCormack, a prominent patient safety advocate and author of Taylor’s
Law, which made health care providers more accountable, announced
today that he is campaigning for passage of H. 2663, pending legislation
to improve hospital safety by limiting the number of patients assigned
to registered nurses. McCormack, whose 13-month old daughter Taylor
died tragically due to a preventable medical error in a Massachusetts
hospital, has devoted his life since her death to fighting to keep
patients safe in hospitals.
At
a State House press conference McCormack characterized his support
for the safe RN staffing bill as a continuation of his “promise
to Taylor that I’d make hospitals safer for all children...I
am continuing the fight for patient safety by supporting the Nurses'
Bill, a new law that would set safe limits on the number of patients
the hospital industry can assign to a nurse at any one moment. Today,
there is no limit to the number of patients a nurse can be forced
to care for.”
McCormack added, “Children are safer in daycare—where
they are protected by strict limits on the number of children a
daycare provider can care for—than they are in Massachusetts
hospitals. This is shocking. And it is unacceptable to every parent
in the Commonwealth.”
McCormack’s
announcement follows the release last week of an alarming study
by HealthGrades, a leading health care research firm, that found
that more than 82,000 patients a year die in our nation’s
hospitals as a result of preventable medical errors and that the
leading causes of those deaths can be linked to issues impacted
by poor RN staffing in hospitals.
Julie
Pinkham, executive director of the MNA, who joined McCormack at
the press conference, stated, “Taylor’s death was not
a result of unsafe staffing in hospitals. Unsafe staffing does,
however, account for tragic deaths like hers, which could be prevented
by stricter patient safety measures. Taylor’s death was part
of the broad systemic problem and that’s why John has made
it his life’s work to improve patient care and to correct
dangerous practices, whatever they may be. John’s statement
of support and his radio ad make clear just what is
at stake in this debate – nothing less than the lives of our
patients. And no step is more important in protecting patient safety
than establishing safe patient limits.”
McCormack
has joined the Coalition to Protect Massachusetts Patients, an alliance
of more than 100 leading health care and consumer advocacy groups
that are seeking passage of H. 2663. The bill sets minimum standards
for RN-to-patient ratios that would be adjusted to reflect the types
of hospitals units and the severity of patient conditions. It would
also ban the use of mandatory overtime for nurses, prohibit requirements
for nurses to practice in areas of the hospital for which they are
not appropriately prepared and prohibits the replacement of registered
nurses with lesser qualified, unlicensed personnel—all of
which are common practices in the hospital industry that contribute
to the deterioration in patient care identified in recent years.
John
McCormack drew national attention to the issue of health care accountability
when he led the fight to pass Taylor’s Law, a Massachusetts
law that gives family members of victims of medical error the right
to appear at medical board disciplinary hearings. His daughter Taylor
died from complications during her hospital stay at Children’s
Hospital after her surgery was delayed. “An investigation
after Taylor died determined that she died because of faulty hospital
policies and procedures. Her death was completely preventable,”
McCormack explained.
As
part of the event, the MNA previewed a new radio ad recorded by
McCormack that will begin airing on WBZ-AM in Boston and WHYN in
Springfield on April 12.
###
John
McCormack Radio Ad in Support of Nurses’ Bill
To Set Safe Patient Limits
“Promise”
John
McCormack: My name is John McCormack. I'm a Gulf War veteran
and a husband, but most of all I'm a father. In 2000, I lost my
baby daughter, Taylor. She died in the hospital because the hospital
failed to keep our little girl safe. When I carried Taylor in my
arms to the hospital morgue, I promised her that I would devote
my life to fighting for changes—like Taylor’s Law—which
made health care providers more accountable. Now, you can help me
continue the fight to make hospitals safer by supporting the Nurses'
Bill, a new law that would set safe limits on the number of patients
assigned to a nurse. Just call 617.722.2000 and ask your legislator
to vote for safe patient limits. Make safe staffing in hospitals
a law. I made a promise to Taylor that I’d make hospitals
safer for all children. Please help me keep that promise.
ANNCR:
Sponsored by the Massachusetts Nurses Association
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