Diagnostic Errors Are Widespread But Preventable
A new survey of clinicians confirms to Atlanta medical malpractice lawyers that diagnostic errors are widespread and contribute to patient injuries. According to the study, close to half or 47% of the clinicians who were surveyed admitted that they encountered diagnostic errors in their practice at least every month.
Out of these, 64% of the clinicians said that up to 10% of the diagnostic errors they have made has contributed to some form of patient harm. However, the good news is that more than 90% of the clinicians believe that diagnostic errors are preventable.
The most frequent conditions in which there were errors in diagnosis included appendicitis, bipolar disorder, pulmonary embolism and myocardial infection. The most frequent misdiagnoses were for various types of cancers. The highest risks of wrong diagnosis among cancers were for breast cancer, colorectal and lung cancer.
According to the study most diagnostic errors are the result of atypical patient presentation, failure to consider other possible diagnoses, inadequate patient history, and insufficient follow-up of test results. Diagnostic errors may also be the result of over testing, medical school training that does not focus on developing problem-solving skills, poorly constructed information technology systems, and low self-confidence among physicians.
Preventing diagnostic errors has proven to be a bigger challenge than reducing the incidence of hospital-acquired infections for many hospitals. However, these errors are preventable. Diagnostic errors can be prevented by encouraging doctors to consider other types of diagnosis and use support tools to make a diagnosis.
Robert J. Fleming is an Atlanta medical malpractice lawyer, dedicated to the representation of injured victims of medical malpractice across Atlanta and Georgia.
