The World Health Organization's new patient safety envoy says the chances of dying in a hospital because of a care-related error are one in 300, while a passenger's risk of death in a plane crash is one in 10 million. According to the agency, seven out of 100 hospitalized patients in developed countries and 10 out of 100 in developing countries contract health care-associated infections. Officials are promoting the use of WHO's surgical safety checklist, saying it could save about 500,000 lives annually worldwide.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...76K45R20110721