"I'm Wrong" and "I'm Sorry"

After posting the blog entry on BostonMed....I was thinking about errors that are made in the realm of healthcare.  Definitely they exist and are well documented  - but there are some not even admitted to, that slip under the radar....and then add to that number the "near misses" - where a mistake is caught before it occurs or does damage.

It is old news and has been the subject of research for a number of years.

It is found that if an acknowlegement of an error is made along with an apology and an offer of monetary compensation - the number of lawsuits goes down - by 36%  in one particular study.  Not only that...but there was a reduction in the amount of time it takes to settle and thus the cost of each individual lawsuit also is reduced.

This was the subject of a study that was funded by Blue Shield in Michigan:

"The program started with the belief that doctors had an ethical obligation to disclose mistakes, and it followed that making a fair offer of compensation was also the right thing to do," Kachalia said. "They really didn't know what it was going to do to costs."

Apparently the study doesn't prove that being honest and disclosure of mistakes reduces liability, but it did prove that it wouldn't "break the bank".......

Patients realize mistakes can be made.  What they usually want when on the receiving end,  is an admission of error followed by sincere apology - and to also see that there is a move toward "fixing" the error or improving the system so no one else has to experience the same mistake. 

We know that Doctors tend to order more CYA tests than necessary just because of he threat of lawsuits - and if there is a reduction in the threat of lawsuits, it follows that a reduction in tests can reduce medical costs in general in the USA.

Dr Death

In Canada, there isn't the propensity to lawsuits as there is in the USA.  I am not saying there aren't any....there are....but not to the extent that you see south of the border.  This is evident in the much smaller insurance premiums paid by Canadian MDs in comparison to their American counterparts (read the comments section where a Canadian MD explains the benefits to working in Canada (don't care for the other MD hosts and some of their their narrow minded rants - seems curious that they didn't believe my defense of the Canadian system as an RN, but would take the MD's as god-honest truth - but then, consider the source).

 Plus, if you decide to sue but don't succeed - you may end up paying everyone's expenses - thus discouraging the "frivolous" type lawsuits.   

As an RN, if you go to court (not that you ever would want to ) the standard that the courts judge you by is against "the standard of a reasonable and prudent nurse with similar education and experience in a similar situation" (CRNBC document)  A poor outcome - as long as everything was done to the best of the medical professions' abilities and in the case of the RN, in line with the Standards of Practice set out by our professional body -  is not grounds for a successful lawsuit.

I am glad of the increased transparency of the system, and hopefully it will continue in this direction.

This song doesn't have anything to do with the posting really....I just liked the song.