New Coalition Aims to Reduce Diagnostic Errors in Medicine

More than a dozen major health care organizations have committed to improving diagnosis.

The recently formed Coalition to Improve Diagnosis, led by the Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine (SIDM), will address diagnostic errors in medicine. According to a recent press release, the coalition is made up of more than a dozen major medical societies, patient and consumer advocates, and health care organizations, including theAmerican Association of Nurse Practitioners. Government partners include the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Each organization has committed to take measurable action to improve diagnosis through the collective actions of the Coalition, as well as opportunities available to and led by each member organization.

Mark L. Graber, MD, FACP, president and founder, SIDM, said in the release, “Physicians excel at diagnosis, but errors or delays in reaching the right diagnosis still create harm, and we can do better.” Dr. Graber explained, “The vision of our Society—SIDM—is to ensure that diagnosis is accurate, timely, and efficient. The Coalition to Improve Diagnosis will be the catalyst for changes in practice needed to realize this vision.”

“The Coalition will bring much-needed attention, awareness and action to this issue,” said Paul Epner, MBA, MEd, chair of the Coalition to Improve Diagnosis and executive vice president of the SIDM in the release. “Engaging leading health care organizations, professional societies and patients is an essential step in improving the quality of care patients receive and in reducing harm that can result from diagnoses that are inaccurate, missed, or inappropriately delayed.”