“Every year between 210,000 and 440,000 Americans die as a result of medical errors and other preventable harm at hospitals, according to researchers.”
These numbers are equivalent to a jumbo jet crashing every day with no survivors. Based on these figures, medical errors could be considered the third-leading cause of death in America, behind heart disease (more than 590,000 a year) and cancer (more than 570,000 a year).
So last spring, Senator Boxer wrote to federal officials urging them to put together a single, unified list. In July 2013, the Partnership for Patients – a new public-private partnership funded through the Affordable Care Act – responded by releasing a list of the 9 most common medical errors:
- Adverse Drug Events
- Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections
- Central Line-Associated Blood Stream Infections
- Injuries from Falls and Immobility
- Obstetrical Adverse Events
- Pressure Ulcers (Bedsores)
- Surgical Site Infections
- Venous Thromboembolism (Blood Clots)
- Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia 3
Click here to read the full report.
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Doctor, Did You Wash Your Hands? ™ provides information to consumers on understanding, managing and navigating health care options.
Jonathan M. Metsch, Dr.P.H., is Clinical Professor, Preventive Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; and Adjunct Professor, Baruch College ( C.U.N.Y.), Rutgers School of Public Health, and Rutgers School of Public Affairs and Administration.
This blog shares general information about understanding and navigating the health care system. For specific medical advice about your own problems, issues and options talk to your personal physician.