Philadelphia Medical Malpractice Lawyer Notes That The New Focus Of Patient Safety Experts Is On Diagnostic Errors
A recent study by Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions has indicated that diagnostic misadventures represent a much larger source of preventable health problems and deaths than many of the more popular targets. If fact, David Newman-Toker, M.D., Ph.D. and Peter Pronovost, M.D., Ph.D. reported that misdiagnosis accounts for an estimated 40,000 to 80,000 deaths per year and that legal claims for diagnostic errors defined as diagnoses that are missed, wrong or delayed are nearly twice as common as claims for medication errors. (news article)
Placing the focus on reducing diagnostic errors will emphasize the reduction of larger "system" failures that affect medical practices overall. What this means is that increased focus will move away from the model that chastises the malpractice for individual physicians to one that focuses on improving the medical system as a whole which should in the long run improve diagnostic accuracy, as well as the cost effectiveness of care.
The Philadelphia medical malpractice law firm of Reiff and Bily believe that a systematic approach and solutions adopted by hospitals and doctors requiring physicians to follow a procedural check list that emphasizes proper diagnosis will result in a decrease of catastrophic injuries and deaths.
The Johns Hopkins team suggested diagnostic errors might be reduced by systematically adopting tools such as checklists that help physicians remember critical diagnosis or by making available computer programs known as "diagnostic decisions support system" that assists physicians in calculating the level of risk of a given patient having certain diseases. Health systems could further decrease diagnostic errors they say with time tested and low tech tools such as independent second looks at x-rays and CT scans or rapidly directing patients with unusual symptoms to diagnostic experts.
We welcome this step in addressing the diagnostic error problem by shining a light on them. If you or a loved one has suffered as the result of a misdiagnosis, please contact one of our medical malpractice lawyers at Reiff and Bily at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.
