Patients for Patient Safety US adds two patient safety advocates to its board

Patients for Patient Safety US has appointed Dr. Charity S. Watkins and Vonda Vaden Bates to its Board of Directors as the nonprofit expands work on diagnostic excellence, patient engagement and AI-driven harm prevention. Both appointees bring personal experience with medical errors and advocacy focused on safer, more equitable care.

Why it matters: - Patients for Patient Safety US is adding two nationally recognized advocates with lived experience of diagnostic harm. - The board expansion supports the nonprofit’s push to improve diagnostic accuracy, timeliness and patient-family engagement. - PFPS US is also broadening its work on the use of AI to prevent patient harm.

What happened: - Patients for Patient Safety US announced the appointment of Dr. Charity S. Watkins and Vonda Vaden Bates to its Board of Directors on Sept. 30, 2026. - The nonprofit said the appointments strengthen its leadership as it expands research and measurement efforts around diagnostic excellence. - PFPS US is based in Smyrna, Georgia, and was founded in 2021.

The details: - Dr. Charity S. Watkins is an associate professor of social work at North Carolina Central University. - Watkins’ work focuses on patient engagement, health equity and social advocacy in maternal health. - Watkins brings lived experience navigating a delayed diagnosis of peripartum cardiomyopathy. - Her research centers on severe maternal morbidity and on integrating social workers into obstetric care. - Watkins’ scholarship and leadership have contributed to national conversations on healthcare quality, safety and equitable, patient-centered care. - Vonda Vaden Bates is an alliance builder, leadership coach and organizational development consultant. - Bates is CEO and senior consultant of 10th Dot®. - Bates has been a nationally and internationally recognized patient safety advocate since 2013. - Bates has spoken from her family’s experience of losing her husband to a preventable hospital-acquired venous thromboembolism. - Bates’ advocacy has reached PFPS US, the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation, the Patient Safety Movement Foundation, the World Health Organization, U.S. government agencies and the broader healthcare industry. - PFPS US advances patient safety through advocacy for diagnostic excellence, structural safety reform and authentic engagement of patients and families in healthcare policy and practice. - More information is available at PFPS US.

Between the lines: - The appointments signal a stronger emphasis on lived experience as a driver of board governance and strategy. - PFPS US is tying patient safety to broader system issues, including bias, measurement and technology. - The organization is positioning diagnostic accuracy as a core safety issue rather than a narrow clinical problem.

What's next: - PFPS US is expected to continue expanding its research and measurement work on diagnostic accuracy and timeliness. - The nonprofit is also advancing efforts to use AI in ways that reduce patient harm. - The board additions likely give PFPS US more credibility as it pushes patient- and family-centered policy changes.