Medical school to create patient-safety institute

The medical school at Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, will develop a center for studying medical errors, the Mount Sinai Center for Medical Simulation, using a $10 million grant from Mount Sinai Health Care Foundation. Open to both medical students and healthcare professionals, the center will use actors to portray patients in simulations designed to improve patient care and physician training. Medical school Dean Ralph Horwitz said the grant "focuses the efforts of the entire Cleveland medical community on healthcare quality and the development of innovative strategies to ensure patient safety. We believe the center . . . will become a model for others in the nation." The grant is the largest to date for the foundation, which was formed by the 1996 sale of 344-bed Mount Sinai Medical Center to the now-defunct Primary Health Systems. The center will be located at the site of the former hospital. -- by Mark Taylor