Posted on 09/24/2012 6:00:51 AM PDT by TurboZamboni
When there is a plane crash in the U.S., even a minor one, it makes headlines. There is a thorough federal investigation, and the tragedy often yields important lessons for the aviation industry. Pilots and airlines thus learn how to do their jobs more safely.
The world of American medicine is far deadlier: Medical mistakes kill enough people each week to fill four jumbo jets. But these mistakes go largely unnoticed by the world at large, and the medical community rarely learns from them. The same preventable mistakes are made over and over again, and patients are left in the dark about which hospitals have significantly better (or worse) safety records than their peers.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
you know, doctors put their pants on one leg at a time. But the patients want a perfect result.
This is NOT about falling short on perfection!
This is about a system where nobody double checks ANYTHING!
As they assume somebody else checked.
I’m 6-1, 180, and workout with 200 lb. benchpress, and yet nearly died twice in hospitals in the last 5 years.
Once from staph infection and the other from a poor post colonoscopy cauterization, nearly bleeding to death.
A hospital killed my mother-in-law on April 2, 2012. They gave her the wrong type blood transfusion.
Sloppy work, horrible outcome.
well that is because you drank the KoolAid of needing the latest medical test, a colonoscopy— which is a sick sick sick “procedure”
a few years ago the “procedure” that was popular was fixing everybody’s deviated septums. it’s a money maker, silly, little more
there will be a new popular must have test shortly that everybody needs to get too
My wife will NOT allow a family member to be left alone in a Hospital. We just don’t trust them.
As I've been saying for the last 30 years, "Don't get sick!"
The incentives in health care are all in the wrong places, and they have been since Congress passed Medicare legislation in 1965.
I have absolutely no more trust in any part of the medical system, every single time I have had to experience going to a doctor I came out on the short end of the deal, from when all my upper teeth had to be removed and they gave me an upper plate I wore only twice it was so uncomfortable and I paid $5,000 for to when I had to get my CDL medical card they tacked on another hundred for non specific tests, so now for this last year I have been driving without a medical card, yes I am breaking a law and taking a chance, but man I feel so good at being a rebel!
Bottom line is this, I just refuse to give any money out for any healthcare, if I get sick I’ll take my chances.
We don’t live forever. We are not supposed to.
The real killer is infection. Staying in the hospital will kill you. It might be 6 months later when the infection finally kills but the hospital stay was the source.
Beware of catheters....... they are more deadly than guns
transparency will never happen..Hospitals hire too many substandard people
I had a friend who went to the hospital for right knee replacement surgery. Just before he went to surgery, he had his wife take a Sharpie and write on his “left” knee, “Wrong knee Doc”. And she wrote on his belly, “right knee replacement, not a vasectomy”. The doc said after the surgery that he got a good laugh out of it and said he might make this part of his routine prep.
But the patients want a perfect result.
Are you sure it's always the patient who wants the perfect result? When I was hospitalized for a heart condition, the doctors and the institution ran up a $30,000 bill of work that an insurance lawyer I consulted later analyzed were not required. When I met with the hospital administrator and the primary doctor about the report, they said that they had to do those tests because of malpractice lawsuits families brought when they didn't do ETKTM -- every test known to man.
My father died of a hospital-borne infection. My mother had been a candy-striper at that hospital for years, and knew that the cross-infection rate was low. Our decision not to go after the doctors and hospital were met with skeptical disbelief on their part, so they were not willing to discuss what happened candidly. So the fear of the lawyers and juries affected the doctor/family relationship. Investigation into the root cause? Crickets. I believe that adhering to best medical practice should be as ironclad a defense in reality as the (mistaken) belief that truth is the perfect defense against defamation. I like the idea of video records, "open" charting, and more participation by the patient in his or her care and the decisions thereto. I would also like to see waivers be available so that people wishing to get the BEST care can say "I promise to keep the lawyers out of it if you promise to keep Dr. Death out of it, too."
Report cards? Also an idea worth investigating, although I'd be careful about too much information to the general public -- too few people have the willingness to learn the basics before trying to make decisions. "Sips of knowledge intoxicate the mind, while deeper drinking sobers it again."
Where I think report cards would be the most useful is when doctors can review the candidates when referring patients to specialists. Currently, that's done with "the old boys club";a more fact-based system would be preferable. Just a thought.
Bottom line - educate yourself and take charge of your own health.
And if something doesn't seem right, raise hell. You may be the only one who notices.
Stay out of hospitals if you want to live a long life. With the influx of third-worlders in charge of sanitation, MERSA is killing many patients. Some below- grade hospital personnel are in charge of the distribution of medications, and predictably, mayhem ensues.
When our family member lay dying, a cheery go-fer from physical therapy arrived “to take her to therapy for some exercise.” Happily, there was family present to inform this cretin that she was comatose and wouldn’t be needing their services.
Does anyone think this atrocious situation will improve when the federal government takes charge of medical care in this country?
Wise woman. When my wife had surgery the nurses repeatedly tried to give her the wrong medicine. If I hadn't been there I don't know what the outcome would have been.
I had to deal with yellow jaundice because I was overmedicated with meds that I had to take clear away my celluitis. It is gone now, but I will be having a “talk” tomorrow with my oral surgon.
so you were considering suing because they ran tests on you that you and some dipstick insurance “professional” thought didn’t need to be performed?
excuse me? your “cause of action” would be they took too good care of you?
If the tests hadn’t been run and you croaked, (a huge percentage of people do die from their first heart attack)your family would have jumped to the conclusion that the test would have definitely identified your problem and prevented your untimely demise.
YOU ASSUMED THE HOSPITAL DID SOMETHING WRONG, RIGHT? Just like everybody who doesn’t recognize death is normal, ya gotta croak from something, and that anytime someone doesn’t die, it is a freaking miracle.
Did you read the article?
oh it’s not MERSA, it’s the third world employees killing the patients, right? Ridiculous
This is about a system where nobody double checks ANYTHING!
Funny you should mention that. I remember reading an article about seven years ago about a doctor who instituted checklists in his emergency room practice.
First, in that article, he discussed the history of the Boeing 299 airframe, and the demo in front of generals where the plane crashed in plain view of all the brass. Investigation into the fatal crash showed that some modifications had been made to the plane at the last minute, and the mods on top of all the other pesky little details were too much for the pilots to remember. A bunch of pilots who later flew evaluation articles decided that planes were getting too complicated to fly by the seat of their pants...and so was born the use of checklists. With astonishingly good results. That airframe went on to be the B-17 bomber.
Many medical procedures depend on a large number of small steps that have to be done in the right order, in the right amount, at the right time, and under considerable strain and pressure. Checklists help sort out all the pesky details, especially when nurses are empowered to be "co-pilots" and "flight engineers" to be sure that the "pilot" does everything correctly.
Don't forget the article points out that voluntary compliance may not be enough. Any quality control person will tell you that you can't assume, you have to check and make sure. So the use of cameras can provide the "focus" some people need to be sure they are doing the right thing.
I have had only one severely bad experience with a doctor, the one who misdiagnosed Mononucleosis -- his specialty was geriatrics but he took on a 19-year-old patient anyway, and passed the Dipliomate certification test. His malpractice put me in the hospital. 'Nuff said. That's why I have such a dim view of "certifications". In medicine, and elsewhere.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.