Croskerry has suggested that the magnitude of the health system problem with mistakes was unmasked and that “the new century ushered in an era of openness.” 1 How open is a system where none of the organizations that participated in the 2004 study on health system error by Norton and colleagues 2 can or will report whether they make more mistakes, fewer mistakes or the same number as they did six years ago? If hospital board members, administrators and governments really cared, they would ask about and report on whether the rate of unnecessary and preventable death, discomfort and disability is going up, going down or staying the same.
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For the full letter, go to: www.cmaj.ca/cgi/eletters/182/5/524