Small mistakes can have huge consequences, and medical malpractice is far more common than many people realize. It’s estimated that one out of every 10 patients will suffer medical harm, and 50% of those incidents are due to preventable mistakes.
That’s not just distressing — it’s terrifying. If you are a patient (or someone you love is a patient), you need to be aware of three common areas in healthcare where mistakes are made:
1. Misdiagnosis
Misdiagnoses happen all the time. A patient may go to the doctor with an assortment of concerning symptoms and be given a diagnosis that does not fully take everything into account. For example, doctors may rush to dismiss a patient’s stomach cancer as anxiety or dismiss a woman’s heart attack as indigestion. Even when a misdiagnosis doesn’t lead to a preventable death, a patient can suffer harm from taking medication that is useless and unneeded — and prescribed for a condition they don’t have.
2. Surgical errors
Medical mistakes can happen during high-stress surgeries. Mistakes can happen even before a patient undergoes a surgery, such as if their medical records are mixed up. Surgeons can also cause irreparable harm to patients if they perform surgery on the wrong side of the body. Patients can also experience harm after a surgery, such as if retained foreign objects cause internal wounds or infections.
3. Medication issues
Patients can experience serious harm because of a medication issue. Common errors include situations where a patient is given a new medication that interacts badly with something they are already using, patients who are given medications at the wrong doses and patients who are given the wrong drugs entirely due to pharmacy errors.
If you are a victim of medical malpractice, you should be aware of your legal rights. You may be entitled to compensation for your injuries and losses. You can reach out for professional legal guidance to take the next steps.