Medical Errors

Clinical Rotations

Exam Bonus Question:

List the National Patient Safety Goals

+1 point each!

After your exam, look up these terms:

1. PICU

2. Dehydration

3. John Hopkins Medical Center

4. Narcotics

5. Methadone

6. Central Intravenous Lines

7. Narcan

Medical Errors

• A medical error is a preventable adverse effect of care, whether or not it is evident or harmful to the patient.

• This might include an inaccurate or incomplete diagnosis or treatment of a disease, injury, syndrome, behavior, infection, or other ailment.

• Medical errors cost tens of thousands of lives in US hospitals each year—more than deaths from highway accidents, breast cancer, and AIDS combined.

Medical Errors in United States

• Studies have put the numbers of deaths anywhere from 44 000 to 98 000 annually in hospitals.

• That is the equivalent of at least 4 jet liners crash landing every week for one year without any survivors!!

Leading Causes of Death in US1. Heart disease: 597,689

2. Cancer: 574,743

3. Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 138,080

4. Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 129,476

5. Accidents (unintentional injuries): 120,859

6. Alzheimer's disease: 83,494

7. Diabetes: 69,071

8. Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 50,476

9. Influenza and Pneumonia: 50,097

10. Intentional self-harm (suicide): 38,364

The Josie King Story

Josie King Video

Group Discussion Questions

1. What factors contributed to Josie King’s death?

2. Think about a time when you or a loved one felt worried about the quality of care being provided. Did you feel empowered to express your concerns? What did your provider do (or what could he/she have done) to make you feel more comfortable speaking up?

3. In the case of Josie King, how could the hospital and its providers have given Sorrel King more power over how Josie was treated?

4. If you plan to be a clinician, what are specific things you can do to make patients feel respected and included in decisions about their health care?