Yanling Yu, PhD

Co-founder & President, Washington Advocates for Patient Safety

wapatientrights@gmail.com

Seattle, WA

Yanling learned about patient safety the hard way, when her father died after being given an off-label medication that was contraindicated for his medical conditions and caused fatal adverse reactions. Following two deficiency reviews, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services determined that the care provided to her father violated patients’ rights, failed to recognize well-established risks, and did not meet professionally recognized standards.

Determined to help protect other patients from preventable harm, Yanling and her husband, Rex, brought their first legislative idea to Washington State lawmakers and successfully advocated for its passage into law in 2011, strengthening transparency of healthcare regulatory board actions. In 2012, they co-founded Washington Advocates for Patient Safety (WAPS), a nonprofit dedicated to improving healthcare quality and patient safety while promoting patient-centered care and shared decision-making. In 2019, Yanling, Rex, and fellow WAPS board member Peter Mullenix again initiated and successfully advocated for legislation they developed, resulting in a law requiring healthcare providers sanctioned for sexual misconduct to notify their patients in writing about the disciplinary action.

Yanling has extensive experience bringing the patient perspective to healthcare policy and decision-making at both the state and federal levels. Her service has included nine years as a public member of the Washington State Medical Commission; two years on the National Advisory Council for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; four years as a consumer representative on the FDA Pulmonary-Allergy Drugs Advisory Committee; six years on the National Quality Forum’s Patient Safety Standing Committee; and two years on the Federation of State Medical Boards’ Workgroup on Oversight of Clinical Decision-Making. She also served four years on the national advisory committee for the Train-the-Trainer Interprofessional Faculty Development Program and as a T3 faculty member at the University of Washington. She currently serves on the Washington State Healthcare-Associated Infection Advisory Committee and the Washington Patient Safety Coalition Steering Committee.

Yanling and Rex also conduct free public workshops to help patients and families become informed healthcare consumers, speak up about their concerns, and communicate more effectively with their care teams. They share the importance of the patient voice through professional education and medical training, including TeamSTEPPS training and nursing school seminars at the University of Washington as well as student education on error disclosure at Washington State University. In recognition of their contributions to patient safety, they have received the Robert L. Wears Patient Safety Leadership Award and an award from the Foundation for Health Care Quality/Washington Patient Safety Coalition.

Through her years of advocacy, Yanling has learned that meaningful improvements in patient safety require collaboration among all stakeholders, with patients’ voices at the table. She remains committed to making healthcare more responsible, accountable, transparent, and safe for everyone.