Ambulatory care accounts for a significant and growing share of
all healthcare services delivered in the United States. To ensure
patient safety, strategies for reducing medical errors in diverse
ambulatory settings must be tested and, when proven, widely
adopted. As reported in the July 2006 Institute of Medicine Report
on Preventing Medication Errors, "The most powerful strategy for
improving safety may be motivating providers and organizations to
support the full engagement of patients and surrogates in improving
the safety of medication use."
To assist physicians and their patients improve
communication, the Massachusetts Medical Society through its
Committee on Quality of Medical Practice has collaborated with the
Massachusetts Coalition for the Prevention of Medical Errors and
with support from the Commonwealth's Betsy Lehman Center to develop
the Medical Information File. This tool provides patients with a
central document where they can track important information such as
their prescription medications, over-the-counter medications, and
primary care physician contact information.
