Modern medicine continually evolves, providing innovative ways to heal and prevent diseases. However, health care can also be a source of harm. Research indicates that around 6% of health care interactions result in preventable harm, leading to numerous deaths annually. Notably, even highly skilled health care providers can cause harm despite following best practices.
To minimize your risk of being harmed, it’s crucial to understand what you can do to reduce preventable harm and what remains beyond your control. The principle of “first, do no harm” is still central to medical care. However, the complexity and fragmentation of our health care system, combined with an ever-growing list of medications and an aging population with chronic conditions, contribute to the high rates of health care-related harm.
Often, these harms are due to the intricate health care system rather than individual mistakes. Harm caused by substandard or negligent care is known as medical malpractice. Both health care providers and systems play vital roles in preventing patient harm.
Unpreventable Harms
Despite extensive scientific research on diagnosing, treating, and preventing diseases, unpredictable reactions to treatments can still occur. For example, a standard antibiotic like penicillin can cause anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction, although this is rare.
Other unpreventable harms include:
- Medication side effects: Every medication has potential side effects, such as nausea or rash.
- Misdiagnosis: Even the most skilled health care providers can make diagnostic errors, leading to unnecessary or delayed treatments.
- Inaccurate test results: False positives and false negatives are common, potentially leading to unnecessary treatments or false reassurance.
Preventable Harms
Preventable harms can be significantly reduced. These harms often result from a series of errors that can be intercepted and corrected. The “Swiss cheese model” illustrates this concept: several layers of defense must fail for an error to occur, much like a fly navigating through multiple slices of Swiss cheese.
Strategies to Avoid Preventable Harms
Taking unnecessary or excessive medications:
- Understand why you need each medication.
- Regularly review your medications with your providers to determine if you can safely reduce the dose or discontinue use.
Taking the wrong medication or dose:
- Take notes or bring someone to help you remember instructions during doctor visits.
- Record medication instructions if possible.
- Verify medication details with your pharmacist and ask questions if unsure.
Wrong site surgery:
- Confirm with your surgeon the exact site of surgery.
- Ensure the surgical site is marked and verified with your initials before surgery.
The Role of Malpractice
While malpractice might be the first thing that comes to mind when discussing health care-related harm, it represents a small portion of the harm caused by medical care. Only a fraction of people experiencing negligent care file malpractice claims. Many providers and systems now proactively accept responsibility for preventable harm and offer compensation without legal claims.
Conclusion
Some health care-related harms are unavoidable, but you can take steps to reduce the risk of preventable harm. By being proactive and informed, you can help ensure your safety within the health care system.
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