Most hospitals when faced with a medical error work with the affected patient's family through risk managers and attorneys. In contrast, the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago is taking a non-traditional approach when it comes to medical errors. The hospital's process has been in the making since 2004 when a consultation service was created to help staff communicate quickly with patients and families after incidents. In 2006, this service evolved into a policy of full disclosure, apology and offer of financial compensation. According to Chief Safety Officer Timothy McDonald, the number of lawsuits has dropped and financial payouts to patients have not increased. The program has also identified safety issues that have led to almost 200 hospital procedure improvements.
McDonald and cardiac anesthesiologist Dave Mayer are taking the message one step further by producing a series of patient safety videos. The main purpose of these videos is patient safety education for hospital staff. The creators also see value in using the videos to teach patients to take a more active role in their healthcare. To see a trailer for the first video: "The Faces of Medical Error: From Tears to Transparency," click here.
To read more about how the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago manages patient safety, continue here.
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Almost 200,000 Americans die from preventable medical injuries each year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 99,000 of these patient deaths are the result of hospital-acquired infections.
There is currently no mandatory nationwide reporting system for medical errors. The American Medical Association (AMA) and American Hospital Association have weighed in with the opinion that mandatory reporting would drive medical errors underground. However, AMA officials support voluntary reporting and the American Hospital Association is in favor of disclosing mistakes to families involved in specific incidents. Without a nationwide mandatory reporting system, states are on their own when it comes to collecting and reporting on data. This also puts patients at a loss when making critical healthcare decisions. To read the entire investigative report, click here.
To see how New Jersey is addressing medical errors, read this news brief.
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