| July 23, 2004 | FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
| For Further Information Contact: Sally Garneski (sgarneski@facs.org) 312-202-5409, or Cory Petty (cpetty@facs.org) 312-202-5328 |
SURGEONS GROUP APPLAUDS SENATE-PASSED
PATIENT SAFETY LEGISLATION
CHICAGO—Thomas R. Russell, MD, FACS, Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons, commends the U.S. Senate for passing the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2004 last night.
"Senators Judd Gregg [R-NH] and Edward Kennedy [D-MA] should be congratulated for working in a bipartisan manner to pass this important legislation," Dr. Russell noted. "We must encourage physicians and other health professionals to report and evaluate medical errors within a safe learning environment. We believe that this legislation will help us take an important step toward accomplishing this goal."
"There is much that we can and will do to improve patient safety, but we need certain tools to do the job well," Dr. Russell observed. "Last night's Senate vote was an important step in gaining these tools, now Congress needs to finish its work before the end of the year," he said. "The American College of Surgeons stands ready to assist Congress in seeing patient safety legislation signed into law."
The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and to improve the care of the surgical patient. The College is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 65,000 members, and it is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. (http://www.facs.org)
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Revised July 26, 2004
Revised