September 17th is patient safety day, and the theme for this year is “improving diagnosis for patient safety” with the slogan “get it right, make it safe!”. The aim of this year’s theme is to emphasize the importance of accurate and timely diagnosis, in ensuring patient safety and significantly improving health outcomes.
We at Vitalis Home Healthcare aim to be a part of creating awareness, by educating our readers on the dangers of diagnostic errors, and sharing insights on how to stay protected as a patient.
To get started, let’s understand what diagnosis is. Diagnosis identifies a patient’s health problem, and is vital to assessing and understanding the care and treatment an individual needs.
Meanwhile, a diagnostic error is the failure to establish an accurate and timely explanation of a patient’s health problem. This can be as a result of delayed, incorrect or missed diagnosis, or a failure to clearly communicate the diagnosis and treatment options to the patient. There are many dangers of diagnostic errors which could range from no harm, to significant harm, leading to morbidity and death, some of which we will explore in today’s article.
- Medical Expenses: Misdiagnosis may lead to a serious increase in medical expenses for individuals or their families. A misdiagnosis may lead to a situation that causes one to spend more than necessary for the treatment of a particular condition, due to the error.
- Safety Hazard: Misdiagnosis poses a safety hazard in the lives of patients, as chronic conditions may be wrongly diagnosed, prolonging the duration for administering proper treatment to said condition. Some examples of such conditions are cancer, diabetes, arthritis etc.
- Loss of life: Over 4 million diagnostic error cases lead to pain and injury, and over 80,000 die as a result of this. When treatments are offered for the wrong condition, it may lead to complications which could cause the loss of lives.
It is easy to feel helpless and at the mercy of wrong diagnosis, especially without any prior medical background. Nevertheless, there are certain measures patients can adopt to help increase their safety, and reduce the risk and danger of diagnostic errors. Some of these measures include;
- Stay informed: It is important that individuals stay up-to-date on current medical trends and news. Thanks to the internet, such information is easily accessible in today’s world. However, it is important to ensure that the information source is trustworthy and reliable. Some authentic sources for medical news includes; The National Institute for Health website, The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, The World Health Organization website, etc.
- Seek a second opinion: There are some instances where patients do not feel comfortable or satisfied with a medical diagnosis, it is vital to seek a second opinion from another medical professional during such instances.
- Invest in a family doctor: One of the many benefits of having a family doctor is that it reduces the possibility of diagnostic errors. This is because family doctors usually have a deep knowledge and understanding of a patient’s medical history and record, which helps in improving the accuracy of a diagnosis.
Researchers have found that cancers, vascular events and infections are the commonly most misdiagnosed conditions that lead to life altering situations. It is important that you adopt certain measures, playing your role in keeping yourself safe from the dangers of diagnostic errors.
At Vitalis Healthcare, the safety and well-being of our patients is a top priority. Our team of registered nurses and experienced caregivers guarantee to contribute to the achievement of our mission, to improve the quality of life for our clients in the comfort of their homes.
To learn more about our services and how best we can help you, kindly book a free consultation to get in touch with our client care coordinator.
Phone Number: 240.716.6874
Email: info@vitalishealthcare.com
Locations covered: We provide our services in every county in the State of Maryland, United States of America.
Office Address: 8757 Georgia Avenue Suite 440 Silver Spring, MD 20910