Report Measures Damage From Medical Mistakes
Report Measures Damage From Medical Mistakes
Misdiagnosed Medical Conditions: A Silent Epidemic Taking Lives and Causing Disabilities
It’s an alarming reality that approximately 795,000 Americans succumb to or face permanent disability each year due to misdiagnosed medical conditions[^1^]. A groundbreaking analysis led by experts at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore delves into the issue of diagnostic errors and their profound impact[^1^]. The study’s findings shed light on the magnitude of the problem, emphasizing the urgent need for solutions to tackle this silent epidemic.
A Comprehensive Examination of Diagnostic Error
Dr. David Newman-Toker, the lead author of the study and director of the Center for Diagnostic Excellence at Johns Hopkins, highlights that prior investigations have primarily focused on errors occurring within specific clinical settings, such as primary care, emergency departments, and hospital-based care[^1^]. However, these studies failed to capture the cumulative serious harms across multiple care settings. As a result, previous estimates of misdiagnosis-related deaths and disabilities have varied immensely, ranging from 40,000 to 4 million per year[^1^].
The researchers from Johns Hopkins University and the Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions took a different approach, examining 15 diseases to determine the impact of misdiagnoses[^1^]. Their analysis revealed that 371,000 Americans die and 424,000 are permanently disabled each year as a result of diagnostic errors[^1^]. Astonishingly, nearly 75% of serious harms are linked to vascular events, infections, and cancers[^1^]. Furthermore, these 15 diseases alone account for almost 51% of all serious harms[^1^]. Out of these, five conditions – stroke, sepsis, pneumonia, venous thromboembolism, and lung cancer – contribute to nearly 39% of total serious harms[^1^].
Error Rates Across Diseases: A Call for Action
The study highlights that although the overall average error rate across diseases is approximately 11%, there is significant variation[^1^]. While some diseases, such as heart attack, have lower error rates of around 1.5%, others, including spinal abscess, have shockingly high error rates of up to 62%[^1^]. Stroke emerges as the leading cause of serious harm resulting from misdiagnosis, affecting 17.5% of cases[^1^].
Identifying diseases with high error rates should be a top priority for the development of solutions[^1^]. Dr. Newman-Toker asserts, “A disease-focused approach to diagnostic error prevention and mitigation has the potential to significantly reduce these harms”[^1^]. By reducing diagnostic errors by just 50% for stroke, sepsis, pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, and lung cancer, it’s estimated that permanent disabilities and deaths could be diminished by 150,000 per year[^1^].
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Solutions in Action: The Journey to Excellence
Johns Hopkins University is already at the forefront of efforts to address missed stroke cases through innovative solutions[^1^]. These solutions include:
- Virtual patient simulators: To enhance the diagnostic skills of frontline clinicians.
- Portable eye movement recordings: Using video goggles and mobile phones to enable specialists to remotely assist in diagnosing stroke.
- Computer-based algorithms: Automating portions of the diagnostic process.
- Dashboards for quality improvement: Providing performance metrics and feedback to support continuous improvement.
Despite the availability of these solutions, funding remains a persistent barrier[^1^]. Dr. Newman-Toker emphasizes that diagnostic errors constitute the most under-resourced public health crisis we currently face[^1^]. While research funding has just reached $20 million per year, significantly more investment is required to achieve diagnostic excellence and eliminate preventable harm caused by diagnostic error[^1^].
The findings of this study, published in BMJ Quality & Safety, provide a wake-up call for the medical community, policymakers, and funding agencies to prioritize research and solutions for diagnostic errors[^1^]. Only through concerted efforts and sustained investment can we hope to achieve significant progress in preventing unnecessary deaths and disabilities caused by misdiagnosed medical conditions.
More information The U.S. National Institutes of Health provides additional resources on stroke diagnosis[^1^].
[SOURCE: Johns Hopkins Medicine, news release, July 17, 2023]
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