Study: Patient safety, profits linked

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June 15, 2005

An AHRQ study of Florida hospitals has found that more profitable facilities have better patient safety outcomes than those that are running at a deficit, according to the Miami Herald.

The study, which was published in the medical journal Inquiry, showed that hospitals with lower profit margins were 12%more likely to have an instance of medical error. Representatives from AHRQ told the Herald that the study gave credence to the idea that patient safety does cost money to implement.

Other results were harder to explain. The same study showed that female patients were 36% more likely to experience a medical error caused by a nurse. Black patients were 11% more likely to experience a medical error than white patients. Hispanic patients were 9% less likely to experience medical error, the study found.

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