Preventable medical errors harm patients in Ohio every year. Over 40 percent of Americans feel that healthcare is a top political issue. However, neither Democrats nor Republicans have addressed preventable medical errors. The statistics regarding preventable medical errors are shocking. Reportedly, medical mistakes are the third leading cause of death in the United States. A 2016 study found that over 250,000 patients likely die every year as a result of preventable medical errors, and a recent survey of nurses found that 35 percent felt not enough is being done to improve patient safety.
Some of the most common types of errors are diagnostic errors and medication errors. Diagnostic errors are estimated to affect over 12 million patient a year, and over 4 million are believed to suffer serious harm as a result. Despite internal investigations into these problems, they remain widespread at medical facilities across the country.
Engineers and analysts have been working to design safety systems to make hospitals safer. Some experts suggest that tracking mistakes is difficult because many medical professionals do not want to admit when a mistake has occurred. The rate of errors that are monitored through data disclosed by hospitals may be inaccurate. The problem with medical errors may be even worse than researchers realize because some mistakes do not cause harm to patients and many are never disclosed.
Families who suspect that a loved one may have been harmed by medical malpractice might benefit from speaking to an attorney. Doctors and other medical professionals are required to treat patients in accordance with the current standard of care in their specialty. The standard of care is defined by what another doctor in the same specialty would do under the same circumstances.
An attorney may be able to help families figure out what went wrong after an adverse medical event. Sometimes, medical malpractice is only uncovered after an inspection of medical records and consultation with expert witnesses.