In the same year that top sportspeople from around the world are coming to London to compete in the Olympics, the Medical Protection Society (MPS) is holding its first international conference to look at the best in quality and safety in healthcare.

MPS is the leading provider of comprehensive professional indemnity in the world and is using its experience to raise awareness of patient safety, risk, quality and systems errors.

The two-day conference – Quality and Safety in Healthcare: Making a Difference – will bring together international experts from around the world to share their knowledge, experience and expertise on quality and safety.

Dr Stephanie Bown, Director of Policy, Communications and Marketing at MPS says, "MPS has 120 years of experience in supporting and representing doctors, dentists and other healthcare professionals when something goes wrong. In recent years we have made a conscious decision to not only respond to members’ needs when they are in trouble, but to actively promote risk management and patient safety as a core function.

“The overwhelming majority of doctors are strongly motivated to provide a high standard of patient care and this is an opportunity to share positive experiences and innovations from around the world.

The conference aims to drive forward the quality and safety agenda as we bring together leaders and experts from different fields to provide real insight into their successes

"The conference aims to drive forward the quality and safety agenda as we bring together leaders and experts from different fields to provide real insight into their successes. This experience and knowledge can then be deployed by doctors in their own working environment."

"Visibility, awareness and participation at all levels of the healthcare system is critical to improving patient safety.”

Keynote speakers at the conference:

Dr Lucian Leape
Professor at Harvard School of Public Health and Chair of the Lucian Leape Institute at the National Patient Safety Foundation, Dr Leape will give an address on Disclosure and Apology – It’s not about the money. He is active in trying to reduce medical error and campaigns for change in the American healthcare system.

Lord Ara Darzi
Well-known as an advocate for quality care, the former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Lord Darzi will be speaking about The Four Components of Quality. Lord Darzi led the NHS ‘Next Stage Review’ in which he emphasised that quality of care should be at the heart of healthcare. Lord Darzi is a world leading surgeon at Imperial College London and has a keen involvement in global health issues.

Dr Gerald Hickson
Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs at the Vanderbilt University Medical Centre and Director of Centre for Patient and Professional Advocacy, Dr Hickson is giving an address on Delivering Quality and Trust. Dr Hickson’s research has focussed on why certain physicians attract a disproportionate share of claims and how to identify and intervene with high risk physicians.

MPS has launched the official conference website with further details of the conference programme.

Notes to editors

• The conference – Quality and Safety in Healthcare: Making a Difference – is a two-day conference, to be held at Church House Conference Centre, Westminster, London on Thursday 15 and Friday 16 November 2012.
• The conference will look at: cost effectiveness of quality; safety and culture; patient experience; outcomes and professional experience.
• Further details about the conference are online. Those interested in attending the conference can register via the website.