[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 53 (Friday, March 18, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Page 15425]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-05731]



[[Page 15425]]

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality


Meeting for Software Developers on the Common Formats for Patient 
Safety Data Collection

AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Department 
of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to announce a meeting to discuss 
implementation of the Common Formats with software developers and other 
interested parties. This meeting is designed as an interactive forum 
where software developers can provide input on use of the formats. AHRQ 
especially requests participation by and input from those entities 
which have used AHRQ's technical specifications and implemented, or 
plan to implement, the Common Formats electronically.

DATES: The meeting will be held from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. Eastern on 
Thursday, March 31st, 2022.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held virtually.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Hamid Jalal, Medical Officer, 
Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety, AHRQ, 5600 Fishers 
Lane, Rockville, MD 20857; Telephone (toll free): (866) 403-3697; 
Telephone (local): (301) 427-1111; TTY (toll free): (866) 438-7231; TTY 
(local): (301) 427-1130; Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: AHRQ coordinates the development of sets of 
standardized definitions and formats (Common Formats) that make it 
possible to collect, aggregate, and analyze uniformly structured 
information about health care quality and patient safety for local, 
regional, and national learning. The Common Formats include technical 
specifications to facilitate the collection of electronically 
comparable data by Patient Safety Organizations (PSOs) and other 
entities. Additional information about the Common Formats can be 
obtained through AHRQ's PSO website at https://pso.ahrq.gov/common-formats and the PSO Privacy Protection Center's website at https://www.psoppc.org/psoppc_web/publicpages/commonFormatsOverview.

Background

    The Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005, 42 U.S.C. 
299b-21 to 299b-26 (Patient Safety Act), and the related Patient Safety 
and Quality Improvement Final Rule, 42 CFR part 3 (Patient Safety 
Rule), published in the Federal Register on November 21, 2008, 73 FR 
70731-70814, provide for the Federal listing of Patient Safety 
Organizations (PSOs), which collect, aggregate, and analyze 
confidential information (patient safety work product) regarding the 
quality and safety of health care delivery.
    The Patient Safety Act requires PSOs, to the extent practical and 
appropriate, to collect patient safety work product from providers in a 
standardized manner that permits valid comparisons of similar cases 
among similar providers. (42 U.S.C. 299b-24(b)(1)(F)). The Patient 
Safety Act also authorizes the development of data standards, known as 
the Common Formats, to facilitate the aggregation and analysis of non-
identifiable patient safety data collected by PSOs and reported to the 
network of patient safety databases (NPSD). (42 U.S.C. 299b-23(b)). The 
Patient Safety Act and Patient Safety Rule can be accessed at: http://www.pso.ahrq.gov/legislation/.
    AHRQ has issued Common Formats for Event Reporting for three 
settings of care--hospitals, nursing homes, and community pharmacies. 
As part of the agency's efforts to improve diagnostic safety and 
quality in healthcare, AHRQ is in the process of developing Common 
Formats for Event Reporting--Diagnostic Safety (CFER-DS).
    Federally listed PSOs can meet the requirement to collect patient 
safety work product in a standardized manner to the extent practical 
and appropriate by using AHRQ's Common Formats. The Common Formats are 
also available in the public domain to encourage their widespread 
adoption. An entity does not need to be listed as a PSO or working with 
one to use the Common Formats. However, the Federal privilege and 
confidentiality protections only apply to information developed as 
patient safety work product by providers and PSOs working under the 
Patient Safety Act.

Agenda, Registration, and Other Information About the Meeting

    The March 31 meeting will be an interactive forum designed to allow 
meeting participants not only to provide input but also to respond to 
the input provided by others. To encourage stakeholder feedback, this 
meeting will feature a panel of representatives from two PSOs who will 
share insights from their experiences and challenges with incorporating 
Common Formats into the work of their PSOs and reporting providers. 
Sheila Rossi will represent the ECRI and ISMP PSO and Mike Personett 
will represent the Press Ganey PSO on the panel. Time will be allocated 
during the panel presentation to engage meeting participants and foster 
active discussion. AHRQ requests that interested persons send an email 
to [email protected] for registration information. 
Before the meeting, an agenda and logistical information will be 
provided to registrants.

    Dated: March 14, 2022.
Marquita Cullom,
Associate Director.
[FR Doc. 2022-05731 Filed 3-17-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-90-P