Other people's money: a reply to the Joint Commission

Abstract

In a response to Professor Liang's earlier article expressing concern regarding the Joint Commission's Sentinel Event Policy ("SEP"), the General Counsel of the Joint Commission disagreed with the criticisms of the SEP. In this Comment, Professor Liang replies to the Commission's position, indicates that resources devoted to legal issues created by the SEP are not available for patient safety, and that the goal of patient safety may be better served by focusing on near misses rather than sentinel events. Finally, he concludes that the Joint Commission and its critics have the same ultimate goal, and that a cooperative approach which includes federal legislation to protect safety information is essential.