Adherence to Never Events Policy

The Leapfrog Group asks hospitals to agree to all of the following if a never event occurs within their facility:

• We will apologize to the patient and/or family affected by the never event
• We will report the event to at least one of the following agencies within 10 days of becoming aware that the never event has occurred:
• Joint Commission, as part of its Sentinel Events policy*
• State reporting program for medical errors
• Patient Safety Organization (e.g. Maryland Patient Safety Center)
• We agree to perform a root cause analysis, consistent with instructions from the chosen reporting agency
• We will waive all costs directly related to a serious reportable adverse event

*Reporting of Sentinel Events to the Joint Commission is voluntary for its accredited hospitals.