Effective July 25, each transplant program and each organ procurement organization (OPO) must specify a secondary Patient Safety Contact within the OPTN Computer System, known as UNetSM.
Each program and OPO already must specify at least one individual as required by OPTN Policy 15.1 (Patient Safety Contact) and currently may name additional contacts. However, they will now be required to name a primary and secondary contact who meet the requirements specified in policy. The secondary contact will be notified in case the primary person cannot be reached.
This action is the first of two phases of a set of actions the OPTN Board of Directors recently approved to standardize the patient safety contact and reduce duplicate reporting. The second phase of implementation, addressing updated requirements relating to Patient Safety Contacts and the contact process, will take place at a later time.
Transplant programs and OPOs should review the policy requirements for the Patient Safety Contact and, by July 25, enter the name of a secondary person in UNet who meets those requirements to serve in that capacity. Currently the data field allows for a secondary contact, labeled as a “Back-up Contact,” on a voluntary basis. As of July 25, OPTN policy will require completion of this field.
The primary and secondary contacts must be two individuals. If the primary and secondary patient safety contacts share a common contact e-mail address and/or phone number, that information may be entered for for both individuals.
For additional reference, you may access Course SYS125, Updating the Patient Safety Contact List, on the OPTN’s learning management system known as UNOS Connect.
Background information
The OPTN Ad Hoc Disease Transmission Advisory Committee proposed a set of policy recommendations relating to patient safety reporting to the OPTN Board of Directors at its meeting in June 2024. Some of the policy provisions will require additional time to establish. However, the Board felt strongly that in the interest of improving patient safety, the provision to require a secondary Patient Safety Contact be enacted as soon as practicable. This has resulted in two phases of implementation. The entire set of new and updated policy requirements is available in the policy notice.
