New Report Sheds Light on Patient Safety Issues in Hospitals
A new report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has revealed reasons why hospitals are ineffective at addressing patient safety issues. Ironically, the report was released during National Patient Safety Awareness Week, an annual event where the National Patient Safety Foundation passes out educational materials to hospitals around the country. Aside from the hilariously… Read more »
Tags: PatientSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Are Doctors More Prone to Medical Mistakes During Residency?
A medical malpractice lawsuit filed against Yale-New Haven Hospital raises some important questions on whether doctors undergoing training can be a threat to patient safety. The lawsuit claims a doctor still in his residency removed the wrong body part from a patient, one of the worst mistakes possible. Why was his patient so upset? The… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Can Birth Injuries Cause Cerebral Palsy in Infants?
Medical mistakes made during birth can have permanent negative consequences for children and their families. Some birth injuries may cause cerebral palsy in infants, a condition that causes impairments in movement, speech or cognition. Cerebral palsy can arise from brain injuries caused by oxygen deprivation (hypoxia) or blunt force trauma. Many children will have difficulty… Read more »
Tags: Pregnancy
Posted in Birth Injury
Can Electronic Health Records Help Your Medical Malpractice Case?
Many hospitals around the country have beefed up their technological infrastructure by adopting electronic health records (EHRs). EHRs can pull the medical histories of patients with ease. For example, EHRs may contain which medications patients are on, demographic information, known allergies and prior health conditions. Having such detailed information can also be beneficial for medical… Read more »
Tags: HealthcareNews
Posted in Medical Malpractice
How Google Will Use Advanced Apps to Improve Patient Safety
Google is planning to use DeepMind, one of its acquired artificial intelligence companies, to improve patient safety for the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS). The app, named Streams, will identify tasks doctors and other health care providers must perform to prevent patients from succumbing to kidney failure. Streams will have full access to the… Read more »
Tags: HealthcareNews
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Why Overworked Pharmacists Cause Medication Dispensing Errors
We talk a lot about how overworked nurses and doctors cause errors, but the same rule applies for pharmacists. Pharmacists are also prone to errors caused by long shifts and quotas. A recent study published in the American Journal of Health-Systems Pharmacy shows that overworked pharmacists made more errors as the number of orders increased…. Read more »
Tags: Pharmacist
Posted in Medication Errors
The Financial and Emotional Consequences of Medical Misdiagnosis
Medical misdiagnosis can cause unnecessary worry and excessive medical bills for patients, so it is important doctors ensure they are accurate. Patients with non-life threatening conditions or minor health problems can be misdiagnosed and forced to spend tens of thousands of dollars on expensive treatments. In fact, The Washington Post recently published an article that… Read more »
Tags: Healthcare
Posted in Misdiagnosis
How You Can Protect Your Child from Medical Errors
In prior blogs, we have discussed how children can become the victims of preventable medical mistakes. For example, famous actor Dennis Quaid’s children almost died after being given blood thinners at 1,000 times the recommended dosage. Fortunately, new studies suggest you can protect your child from medical errors. A recent study published in JAMA Pediatrics… Read more »
Tags: Pediatrics
Posted in Medical Negligence
How Surgical Safety Checklists Prevent Medical Errors
Medical errors have horrific consequences for patients and their families, so it is important for hospitals to institute policies that help health care professionals avoid mistakes. Surgery safety checklists provide ways for doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists and others to double-check their work so mistakes such as operating on the wrong patient or body part can be… Read more »
Tags: PatientSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Common Birth Complications Caused by Medical Malpractice
Ask any expecting mother what her worst nightmare is and she would likely rank birth complications at the very top of the list. Birth complications are sometimes caused by the institutions we depend on the most – hospitals and doctors. When birth complications are caused by medical malpractice, it is especially tragic, because children and… Read more »
Tags: Pregnancy
Posted in Birth Injury
