Patient Safety Organizations Create System for Preventing Health Care Errors

Erected in 2005 thanks to the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act, patient safety organizations (PSOs) have since established themselves as the authoritative body for addressing concerns about potential health care errors. Whether it be investigating unsafe conditions in a health care destination or ensuring medication safety for millions of US patients, PSOs are crucial in protecting the health care systems that keep patients safe.

“Around 2005, they were started by the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality pursuant to the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005,” Catie Stimmel, PharmD, vice president and chief controlled substance and patient safety officer at Walgreens, told Drug Topics. “What this did was it allowed providers a safe space to report any concerns that they had about medical errors, unsafe working conditions, policies and procedures that weren't panning out in operations, [and] even things like medical device concerns and product defects.”

In the pharmacy industry, the workforce and the patients that it serves commonly handles sensitive medications and devices that can be detrimental to community health care if handled improperly. Recently, CVS Health settled a $1.5 million lawsuit after Ohio state regulators uncovered pharmacy safety concerns, including insufficient staff, dispensing errors, expired medications, dirty equipment, and deficient drug security.¹

PSOs exist to avoid these issues, and as patient safety officer at one of the most well-known pharmacy chains in the US, Stimmel is well-versed on the important and necessary functions of PSOs for patients and pharmacies. She joined Drug Topics to tell us exactly what PSOs were designed to do and how they are working around the clock to stay ahead of potential errors and mistakes behind the pharmacy counter.

In part 1, she explores how PSOs got started, the purpose they’re intended to serve, and how she herself became involved with them throughout her pharmacy career.

READ MORE: Public Health Resource Center

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REFERENCE

Plotkin M. Large pharmacy chains face staffing, safety and regulatory issues. Harris Beach Murtha Attorneys at Law. March 15, 2024. Accessed November 21, 2025. https://www.harrisbeachmurtha.com/insights/large-pharmacy-chains-face-staffing-safety-and-regulatory-issues/