World Patient Safety Day; 17th September

Dear Colleagues,
Greetings. Congratulations to each and every one of us on the phenomenal success of World Patient Safety Day 2022, dedicated to the theme of “Medication Safety”!
The members of this Global Patient Safety Network are and have been the driving force behind this outstanding achievement. Thank you for leading and uniting for the cause and for showing your commitment to “Medication Without Harm”. I am delighted to share that the response has been spectacular and extremely impressive. We have received inspiring reports from regions, countries and partners where a wide range of activities and events have been organized. Lighting up of landmark monuments, and iconic buildings in ‘orange’ has become a ‘living symbol’ of World Patient Safety Day year after year and the global solidarity it demonstrates. We encourage colleagues who have not shared the story of their events to please post them on GPSN or via the following e-survey available on the WPSD 2022 campaign page. We are working on a summary report illustrating all these amazing contributions.
On 15 September, WHO headquarters organized a global virtual event Medication Without Harm” with interpretation in eight languages. There were 5191 registrants from around 165 countries across all WHO regions for the event, and it was attended by 1508 participants from 122 countries. The event structured around the strategic framework of the WHO Global Patient Safety Challenge: Medication Without Harm, featured presentations and a panel discussion by global patient safety leaders, medication safety experts and patient advocates. Recordings of this event will be made available soon on the Event’s page.
WHO also issued a News release to raise awareness of the media and the general public on the need to prioritize and address medication safety. In addition to the diversity of communication products, you can view the Director-General of WHO video message here and the Campaign video here.
During this year-long campaign, Patient Safety Flagship will be working with experts and partners to develop a series of Medication Safety Solutions (MSSs), among other technical products aimed at addressing medication safety in priority areas, with high burden of patient harm. Please note that Policy brief: Medication Without Harm; Systematic review: Global burden of medicationrelatedharm; and MSSs – Medication safety in maternal and newborn care; and Medication safety for look-alike and sound-alike medicines will be published in the near future.
On behalf of the WHO Patient Safety Flagship, I would like to extend our deep appreciation and gratitude to all of you. Please do share your stories and amplify the messages of this year’s campaign. Know. Check. Ask.
Looking forward to strengthening the work on Medication Without Harm and maximize the impact of World Patient Safety Day 2022.
 
Thanks and best regards,
 
 
Dr Neelam DHINGRA
Unit Head
WHO Patient Safety Flagship/
A Decade of Patient Safety 2021-2030
World Health Organization
Geneva, Switzerland 
Office: +41 22 791 4660