Personal Injury Law

Holding Doctors Accountable: No More Turning a Blind-Eye to Preventable Medical Mistakes

By Jamie G. Goldstein

Despite constant advances in medical technology, anywhere from 40,000 to 100,000 people die every year from medical error, and many experts believe the actual number could be even higher. Making this even worse is that most of these errors are 100% preventable. Medical errors can include anything from missed or incorrect diagnoses, infections, surgical errors, severe allergic reactions, and wrong drug prescriptions. Despite the fact that most of these errors are preventable, instead of reacting with outrage, the medical community remains complacent in refusing to address their own mistakes. American patients have also come to accept these errors, thinking that nothing else can be done. The health care system is in dire need of an attitude adjustment.

Thankfully, some doctors are now taking a stand and speaking out on what the medical community needs to do in order to help save lives. Most people have heard doctor's complaints that they have to practice 'defensive medicine,' or test patients excessively, driving up medical costs. Despite all this 'defensive medicine,' the rate of preventable medical error remains sky-high. Furthermore, often when legitimate medical errors do occur, the mistake is denied and brushed under the rug. The University of Michigan Health System has taken a different approach to medical error – honesty. When a doctor commits a medical error the patient is compensated quickly rather then dragged into an unnecessary legal battle. The results have paid off; legal-defense expenses dropped 61% since the 'acknowledgement' system was implemented.

More than reducing costs, holding doctors accountable for their mistakes is an essential tool for prevention. Rather than turning a blind eye, valuable lessons can be learned by admitting when errors occur. Possible solutions include mandatory hospital reporting of infection rates, which is now being implemented in a majority of states. This reporting should be mandatory in all states as a matter of patient safety, so reliable data on these killer infections can be compiled and hospitals with high infection rates can be reprimanded. A recent law reduces Medicare payments by 1% for hospitals with high rates of infection.

Routine safety measures need to be reinforced in hospitals, such as hand-washing and follow-up with patients, with consequences if personnel don't comply. Even the most routine medical procedures are still harming patients. Around 80,000 patients develop catheter infections every year resulting in around 30,000 deaths because CDC guidelines on catheter-insertion are not followed. Continuous patient-safety education should also be required in hospitals, as most professions require continuous education in order to maintain the high standard of the profession. Doctors and nurses should also be required to report any deviation from healthcare guidelines in order to reduce the risk of harm to patients.

Commitment, openness, and responsibility need to be ramped up at all levels of the healthcare system. This starts with individual accountability and acknowledgement of medical mistakes instead of continuous denial and complacence.

Full post as published by Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer on October 12, 2010 (boomark / email).