ECRI history

1971—Establishes a public Problem Reporting Network for Medical Devices

1973 Moore and Philip A. Klein begin developing international leading index

1987—Designated a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Center in recognition of the Institute’s achievements in advancing the safety and cost-effectiveness of patient care

1993—Convenes first annual health policy conference to address broad issues about the science, evaluation of evidence, and the use of medical technology, pharmaceuticals, procedures, and health services

1994-95 Soft landing The United States economy's longest expansion in history is aided by a rare soft landing engineered by the Fed, which preemptively hikes and then cuts rates.

1998—Awarded federal contract to develop and maintain the National Guideline Clearinghouse™

2000 Geoffrey H. Moore passes away In March 2000, Moore dies at the age of 86, after a 62-year career in business cycle research.

2001—Awarded federal contract to develop and maintain the National Quality Measures Clearinghouse™

2004—Awarded contract from Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to develop and implement the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, the first independent statewide mandatory adverse event and near-miss reporting system

In mid-2005, Bill Zelle (a recently retired project / operations manager from Fluor) was engaged on a part-time basis and directed by the Board to focus his initial efforts primarily upon what were considered to be the most needed “deliverables” in the area of risk management practices.

A recruitment committee was subsequently set up to find an appropriately qualified industry executive to provide leadership and implement the ongoing development of the organisation which resulted at the end of 2006 in the engagement of Rod Kyle as CEO.

A notable area of outstanding success established at this time has been ECRI’s unique E&C Education and Training Programme which was launched in 2010.

During ECRI’s first 2 strategic plan periods (up to 2013), the organisation – and level of sponsorship – grew significantly and a whole series of initiatives were put into place relating to governance, management and core work activities.

2014—Convenes The Partnership for Promoting Health IT Patient Safety, a private multi-stakeholder collaborative

In 2018, Doctor Marcus Schabacker became ECRI's third President and Chief Executive Officer.

2020—Announces the official affiliation with Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) creating one of the largest healthcare quality and safety entities in the world