JCAHCO Sentinel Events Statistics
Updated sentinel event statistics
The Joint Commission’s sentinel event statistics have been updated on The Joint Commission website. Since the sentinel event database was implemented in January 1995 through June 30, 2008, The Joint Commission has received 5,208 reports of sentinel events. A total of 5,336 patients were affected by these events, with 3,713, or 70 percent, resulting in patient death. The 10 most frequently reported sentinel events are:
Wrong-site surgery 691
Suicide 641
Operative/post-operative complication 598
Medication error 470
Delay in treatment 390
Patient fall 307
Assault, rape or homicide 198
Patient death or injury in restraints 183
Unintended retention of foreign body* 175
Perinatal death or loss of function 159
* Added to reviewable events in June 2005; data represents events reviewed since that time.
