Introduction
Errors in medicine, also known as medical errors, have become a serious public health issue that has become the third leading cause of death in the United States (Rodziewicz et al., 2024). Errors in medicine refers to failures in a planned medical action or the use of a wrong plan to achieve its aim (Rodziewicz et al., 2024). These medical errors can occur at various parts of a patient’s visit from the initial visit to discharge. Some common types of medical errors include misdiagnosis which is a failure or delay in diagnosis, treatment errors which includes errors in the performance of an operation, procedure or test, and medication errors which refers to errors related to prescribing, dispensing or administrating medications (Kumar & Steinebach, 2008). Other types of medical errors include communication and system or equipment failures (Kumar & Steinebach, 2008).
Misdiagnosis Association and Research Institute (MARI), founded by Dr. Pooya Beigi, is an organization that is dedicated to conducting research on this issue (Blissy, 2024). The organization investigates errors in medicine through their research and publications with the end goal of improving quality of life through equitable care to all. This paper will explore the causes, consequences and prevention of errors in medicine emphasizing the importance of this issue.
Causes of Errors in Medicine
As mentioned above, there are many types of medical errors like surgical errors, medication errors, misdiagnosis and device and equipment errors. Each of these errors can be caused due to various reasons whether it be because of patients, health care professionals or due to errors in technology used for medicine.
Healthcare professionals can cause errors in medicine whether it is in a surgical, diagnostic and medication setting. According to Rodziewicz et al. (2024), factors such as distractions, fatigue due to heavy workload, time constraints and clinical knowledge deficiency are common contributing factors to errors in medicine from healthcare professionals. Dr. Pooya Beigi explained that mistakes in paperwork or writing can also cause errors in medicine through medication errors (Blissy, 2024). For instance, an error in a prescription can cause medicine to be filled incorrectly or medicine to be changed, which is later consumed by patients incorrectly, potentially causing serious harm to patients (Blissy, 2024).
In addition to healthcare professionals, patients themselves can also cause errors in medicine. For instance, in the perspective of medication errors, it is possible for patients to receive the correct medication from the pharmacy with all instructions written and explained although if a patient takes the wrong dose (e.g. antibiotics taken once a day rather than every eight hours), it can cause consequences to their health and recovery (Blissy, 2024).
Lastly, medical errors can also be caused by non-clinical or patient errors such as device and equipment errors. With the rise of technology in healthcare to improve efficiency, lower cost and increase quality, there are also chances of technology to cause errors (Rodziewicz et al., 2024). With technology errors such as malfunction, mishandling and flaws in design are inevitable. For example, a patient might have a pacemaker implanted into their chest (Rodziewicz et al., 2024), while it helps to regulate their heart rate, if the technology malfunctions it can pose serious complications to patient.
Consequences of Errors in Medicine
The consequences of medical errors can range from no harm to significant harm (Kalra, 2004). While medical errors can sometimes cause no harm in patients, it is also possible for them to cause serious injury or death (Kumar & Steinebach, 2008). Whether it be through errors in diagnosis, treatment, medication, or tools and equipment, each error is susceptible to impacting the health of patients (Rodziewicz et al., 2024). In addition to the impacts of medical errors on patients, it can also impact healthcare and patients financially. Medical errors cause healthcare costs to rise due to factors like additional treatment or extended stay in hospitals which can put financial burdens on patients as well as healthcare systems (Rodziewicz et al., 2024). Many patients may not be able to afford soaring healthcare costs and those with insurance may not have insurance that covers the entire cost. This becomes a serious issue for patients as it contributes to not being able to receive the appropriate care (Rodziewicz et al., 2024). Lastly, medical errors can impact the healthcare professionals psychologically and legally. Professionals may experience anger, guilt, inadequacy as well as fear associated to the threat of potential legal action which may hinder their own health as well as the care they provide to others (Rodziewicz et al., 2024).
Prevention of Errors in Medicine
While there are different types of errors in medicine, there are many prevention measures that can be implemented within healthcare to decrease the prevalence of these errors. For instance, as explained by Rodziewicz et al. (2024), adopting surgical time-out which is when the surgical team pauses before the procedure to review patient identity, consent forms and procedures can prevent surgical errors. This process ensures procedures are completed accurately according to the specific patient’s needs and decreases the potential chance of errors as surgical team members come to a joint agreement and understanding before the procedure starts. To prevent errors in medicine, regardless of the type of error, it is important for patients to become active participants of their own health (Blissy, 2024). As explained by Dr. Pooya Beigi, keeping better documentation, taking better accountability, and sharing all information with doctors is essential to ensure they can provide the most appropriate care for their patient’s needs (Blissy, 2024). As mentioned earlier, medical errors can be caused due to fatigue, heavy workload and stress in healthcare workers. To prevent this, it is important that healthcare professionals have a balanced workload and regular hours. Whether it be implementing scheduling policies to prevent fatigue or increase of healthcare workers to balance workload, tackling the concerns of healthcare workers is essential to prevent errors in medicine made by professionals (Rodziewicz et al., 2024).
Conclusion
To conclude, errors in medicine is an important public health issue due to the vast consequences it has on patients, healthcare systems and healthcare workers. While medical errors can occur due to various reasons such as misdiagnosis, surgical errors, medication errors and errors in equipment and tools, there are preventative measures that can be implemented to prevent these errors. Preventative measures like the surgical time-out to combat surgical errors, patient involvement in their own health and balanced workload for healthcare workers are some of many measures that can be implemented to combat against errors in medicine.
Reference
Blissy. (2024, Aug 09). Why Your Skin Issue Might Be Misdiagnosed! Dr. Beigi’s Insights | The Blissy Experience Ep. 10 [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=yA7PpiNM600
Kalra, J. (2004). Medical errors: An introduction to concepts. Clinical Biochemistry, 37(12), 1043–1051. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinbiochem.2004.08.007
Kumar, S., & Steinebach, M. (2008). Eliminating US Hospital Medical Errors. International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, 21(5), 444–471. https://doi.org/10.1108/09526860810890431
Rodziewicz, T. L., Houseman, B., Vaqar, S., Hipskind, J. E. (2024). Medical Error Reduction and Prevention. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499956/
Provided and edited by the members of MARI Research, Error in Medicine Foundation, and MISMEDICINE Research Institute, including Charmi Patel, Bukky Alausa, and Dr. Pooya Beigi, MD. MSc.
