Standing alongside the giants of patient safety
Patient safety is not a new field. A century of work — from Ernest Codman's early "end-result" idea through the Institute of Medicine's To Err Is Human (1999) and the Makary & Daniel 2016 estimate of roughly 250,000 preventable deaths a year — has moved the system-level needle. SafetyBuddy honors that work and stands alongside the organizations doing it.
Federal & regulatory
U.S. agencies whose mandates include patient safety research, surveillance, and adverse-event reporting.
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) U.S. lead agency for patient-safety research, evidence reviews, and Patient Safety Organizations (PSOs).
- CDC Patient Safety Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — healthcare-associated infections and patient-safety surveillance.
- FDA MedWatch FDA's voluntary reporting program for serious problems with medications, devices, and other regulated products.
- HHS Office of Inspector General Independent oversight of HHS programs — issues landmark reports on adverse events in U.S. hospitals.
Accreditation & standards
Independent bodies that accredit U.S. hospitals and health systems against patient-safety standards.
- The Joint Commission Largest U.S. hospital accreditor; publishes the National Patient Safety Goals and Sentinel Event Alerts.
- DNV Healthcare CMS-approved hospital accreditor with an ISO-9001-anchored quality and safety framework.
- URAC Accreditor for health plans, pharmacies, and telehealth — patient-safety criteria woven through each program.
Nonprofit & advocacy
Mission-driven organizations driving system change, transparency, and patient/family voice.
- Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Global home of the "Triple Aim" and the modern Zero Harm movement; absorbed the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF).
- ECRI Independent nonprofit applying scientific research to medical device, technology, and total-systems safety.
- Leapfrog Group Publishes the Leapfrog Hospital Survey and Hospital Safety Grade — public, comparable safety scores for U.S. hospitals.
- Patient Safety Movement Foundation Coalition pursuing zero preventable deaths in hospitals; convenes patients, providers, and industry.
- The Empowered Patient Coalition Patient-led education on safety, advocacy, and what to ask in the room.
- Mothers Against Medical Error Family-led patient-safety advocacy and survivor support.
- ProPublica — Patient Safety Investigative-journalism coverage of preventable harm and accountability in U.S. healthcare.
Research & academic
The evidence base that justifies — and quantifies — the patient-safety mission.
- Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality Translates safety research into hospital practice; home of the CUSP (Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program) method.
- BMJ Quality & Safety Leading peer-reviewed journal for patient safety, human factors, and quality improvement science.
- National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine — Health and Medicine Division Successor to the Institute of Medicine. Original publisher of To Err Is Human (1999), which catalyzed the modern patient-safety field.
- Makary & Daniel — Medical error as a leading cause of death (BMJ, 2016) Re-estimated U.S. preventable medical-error deaths at ~250,000/year — now widely cited as the third leading cause of death in the U.S.
International
Global bodies coordinating patient safety policy beyond U.S. borders.
- World Health Organization — Patient Safety Coordinates the Global Patient Safety Action Plan 2021–2030 and World Patient Safety Day each September 17.
We stand alongside this work
SafetyBuddy is not a replacement for, nor a competitor to, any organization on this page. It is the patient-in-the-room half of the same mission — vigilance applied where the system still lags: in real time, with the patient's voice in the loop.
Names and trademarks of the organizations above belong to their respective owners. SafetyBuddy is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or partnered with any organization listed unless explicitly stated. Outbound links open in a new tab.