You might have read about an associate professor at New York University School of Medicine who recently wrote a column for the New York Times admitting a mistake she made as a resident. She overlooked a bleed in a patient’s head and if the radiologist hadn’t caught the error the patient would have died.
The writer, Danielle Ofri, came clean in the article although the incident happened many years ago. She says it took years for her to get over the shame. The point she was trying to make in the article was to show that doctors and hospitals should admit to medical errors to prevent future problems.
There are close to 100,000 deaths per year in the United States resulting from medical errors. It happens more often than you might think. Some states are allowing doctors to explain medical mistakes and apologize for them. The so called “I’m Sorry” laws allow doctors to express compassion but protect them from an admission of liability.
So far 36 states have adopted these laws and the research shows not only is it right to apologize for mistakes it’s smart financially. Apologies help change the tone of the discussion, according to Sorry Works Coalition founder Doug Wojcieszak. Since an apology program was adopted by the University of Michigan Health System, improved communication with patients has cut litigation costs in half.
Another way to minimize medical errors and unnecessary procedures is to get a second opinion. SecondOpinions.com provides patients with a quick and easy way to have a medical scan interpreted by a board certified fellowship trained physician or sub-specialist expert.
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