The Scary Truth Behind Diagnostic Errors
Doctors rely on a wide array of tests, technologies and staff to help diagnose patients with medical conditions. However, sometimes these tests are inaccurate and patients can be misdiagnosed. In some cases, diagnostic errors can lead to delayed treatment, pain and death. What can happen to patients unfortunate enough to experience diagnostic errors? A recent… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Misdiagnosis
Hospital Nightmares: Can Surgical Fires Happen to You?
Some medical mistakes made during surgery can cause significant and permanent injuries to patients, such as surgical fires. Surgical fires can happen when oxygen masks unexpectedly ignite during surgery. Many patients survive, but their lives will never be the same. Take for example the story of a 20-year-old woman who suffered second and third degree… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Are Surgical Site Infections A Hidden Consequence of Medical Wrongdoing?
When patients die days or weeks after surgery, family members often face a mixture of horror, confusion and a strong desire for answers. Grieving family members deserve answers so questions about their loved ones can be put to rest. Surgical site infections are a common killer of patients who have just undergone surgery. When surgeons… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Negligence
Hospital Nightmares: The Worst Types of Surgery Errors
A Boston man is accusing a local hospital of causing his wife’s cancer to spread throughout her abdomen. In an interview with the local press, the husband argued doctors accidently operated on what they thought was a benign tumor. It turns out the tumor was not benign, and after the operation, the cancer spread throughout… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
New Report Reveals Horrifying Dangers to Patients During Surgery
A report released in the October edition of Anesthesiology claims medication errors are extremely common during surgical procedures. According to data, which was compiled by Harvard researchers, medication errors occur in half of all procedures. One-third of these mistakes caused harm to patients and 80 percent were preventable. Researchers analyzed more than 275 surgeries at… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Superbug Infection Rates among Children Increase at Alarming Pace
Superbugs are bacteria that have grown immune to treatment with modern antibiotics, killing tens of thousands of Americans in hospitals every year. However, hospitals and health care practitioners should be aware of is how these harmful bacteria can affect children, and create policies to protect the most vulnerable patients. According to a study published in… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Poor Communication a Major Reason for Diagnostic Errors
Diagnostic errors can cause permanent and sometimes fatal injuries to patients. In previous blogs, we have discussed patients being misdiagnosed with cancer and undergoing chemotherapy, but there are many other stories of how these medical errors affect patients. One recent example made headlines around the world, when a Dallas hospital patient returning from Africa was… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
What Hospital Patients Should Know About Fatal Air Embolisms
Hospitals around the country refer to some medical mistakes as “never events”, errors that should not happen. Performing surgery on the wrong patient or body part, medication errors, using contaminated surgical equipment, air embolisms and misdiagnosing patients are good examples of never events. Air embolisms are an example of a truly horrifying never event because… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
False Alarms at Hospitals can Jeopardize Patient Safety
Several weeks ago, we discussed how work fatigue could contribute to medical mistakes and endanger patient safety. However, other types of fatigue exist within hospitals. Research from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia recently studied the effects “alarm fatigue” can have on health care workers and patient safety. Hospital alarms alert health care workers to patient… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Reports Shows What Happens When Doctors Mock Unconscious Patients
Doctors and other health care professionals are expected to uphold a high level of professionalism and skill, but sometimes they behave badly. A recent blog published in the New York Times gives examples of doctors behaving badly. The article used an essay from the Annals of Internal Medicine to describe what happens when doctors mock… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
