NIH Clinical Center safety and quality tracking system renamed STARS

In April, the Clinical Center implemented a patient safety event new reporting system, called the Safety Tracking and Reporting System, or STARS, that replaces the Occurrence Reporting System (ORS). 

NIH Clinical Center staff are encouraged to use the new patient safety event reporting system to alert the leadership of the NIH Clinical Center about a variety of safety and quality concerns - including errors, near misses (an event that does not reach a patient but could have caused harm if it had), service quality concerns such as delays and unsafe environmental conditions, as well as instances of exceptional customer service by colleagues. 

The STARS has enhanced features to accommodate the Clinical Center's path to high reliability [disclaimer]. It has an improved interface to enable reporting that can more easily result in permanent solutions. At the same time, it informs leadership to organizational shortcomings that compromise patient safety. The login remains the same as the old system. 

Patients, families and visitors will have access to STARS in the future — in the meantime, they can share safety and quality concerns via the Patient Safety Hotline by calling 1-866-444-8811.