Should Hospitals Take Cyberattack Threats Seriously?
Several recent examples of hackers holding patient records hostage have been circulated by news outlets. Hospitals have also faced direct attacks on their IT systems. Other cybersecurity risks at hospitals are far more serious and involve equipment used to treat and monitor patients. These attempts show that patient safety and cybersecurity are becoming intertwined. The… Read more »
Tags: PatientSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Can You Research Your Doctor’s Disciplinary History?
You would research a job candidate or contractor working on your house, right? How about the doctor who is scheduled to perform your next check up? Many people would say no to the second question, simply because they are unaware of the different ways to research doctors. There are tools Florida patients can use to… Read more »
Tags: CheckUp
Posted in Medical Malpractice
How Are Families Affected by Medical Mistakes?
Medical mistakes can severely affect the lives of patients and their families. It would be unfair to suggest that only the patients suffer when errors are made by doctors or hospitals. Some of these errors can cause severe disabilities, meaning parents, siblings, significant others or children are tasked with providing round-the-clock care. The costs of… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Can Doctors Be Sued for Patient Suicides?
The Florida Supreme Court is allowing a case involving a 55-year-old woman who committed suicide in 2008 while under the care of her physician to move forward. In 2008, the woman contacted her doctor’s office and described symptoms such as crying spells, mental strain and gastrointestinal issues. Once the doctor learned of this information from… Read more »
Tags: PatientSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Does Your Child Have This Commonly Misdiagnosed Illness?
Cat owners beware, your precious kitty could be responsible for spreading a dangerous bacterial infection to yourself or family members. The bacteria, Bartonella henselae, is passed between cats and fleas. Bartonella henselae can build up in the mouths and on the paws of cats when they groom themselves. When pet owners develop illness caused by… Read more »
Tags: Pediatrics
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Medical Mistakes You Won’t Believe: An Organ Transplant Gone Wrong
Organ transplants are used to give dying patients a second chance at life. However, sometimes the unthinkable occurs and transplant errors take lives. A transplant error in 2003 gained national attention and led to changes on how these surgeries are conducted. In 2003, Duke University admitted that it used the incorrect organs during a heart… Read more »
Tags: Surgery
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Watch Your Step, Falls in Hospitals Hurt Thousands of Patients Annually
Did you know falls are one of the top patient safety threats in hospitals? Statistics gathered by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) show that thousands of hospital patients are injured in falls every year. One-third of hospital falls are preventable. In some cases, hospitals do not take the necessary steps to prevent… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Can Robots Transform Hospital Safety?
Robots are being used in healthcare settings to prevent pharmacy mistakes, assist with surgery and to diagnose illnesses. In many cases, robots perform these tasks more accurately than human beings. It seems possible robots can make hospitals safer. Read on to learn more about how robots or artificial intelligence have been used to prevent medical… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Should You Use Yelp to Find a Hospital or Doctor?
People use Yelp to find reviews on restaurants, barbershops, retail stores and other businesses. Customers also leave detailed comments describing their experiences with service. Should we use Yelp to rate hospitals or doctors in the same way we do businesses? Would this be a reliable way of finding hospital safety scores? Yelp does allow patients… Read more »
Tags: HospitalSafety
Posted in Medical Malpractice
Can Hospital Interpreters Cause Medical Mistakes?
Hospitals across the country use interpreters to help doctors communicate with patients who primarily speak foreign languages. In some cases, hospital interpreter mistakes cause patients to suffer permanent or fatal consequences. Several years ago, NPR wrote an article that shared the story of Willie Ramirez, an 18-year-old man who suffered a catastrophic injury due to… Read more »
Tags: MedicalMistakes
Posted in Medical Malpractice
