Medical errors refer to any preventable or unanticipated adverse outcome that results from health care. There are four main types of medical errors: diagnostic errors, preventative errors, treatment errors and filing system errors.
Diagnostic errors
These are errors made during the diagnostic process, which can include misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis or failure to diagnose a condition. Diagnostic errors are often caused by a lack of communication between the patient and doctor, as well as a lack of coordination between different members of the health care team.
Preventative errors
Preventative errors are those that occur when a preventable event, such as an infection, occurs due to the negligence of a health care provider. Sometimes, preventative errors can be caused by a failure to follow proper protocol, such as not washing hands or not wearing gloves. Other times, they may be due to a lack of communication between the health care team and the patient.
Treatment errors
Treatment errors occur when a patient receives the wrong treatment, an incorrect dose of medication or an inappropriate procedure. Treatment errors can be caused by a variety of factors, including a lack of communication between the health care team and the patient, a failure to follow proper protocol or a mistake in the administration of the treatment.
Filing system errors
Filing system errors refer to any error that occurs in the health care records, such as a mislabeled chart or an incorrect diagnosis. These types of errors can lead to personal injury as they can lead to the wrong treatment getting administered or the wrong patient being discharged from the hospital.
When you visit a doctor or other health care professional, you expect to receive the best possible care. Unfortunately, medical errors are all too common, and they can have serious consequences for patients. If you or a loved one has been the victim of a medical error, you may want to understand more about the different types of errors that can occur to ensure that you get the compensation and justice you deserve.
