The Department of Heath and Human Services has stated that 180,000 patient deaths were attributed to poor care at the hospital in just one year. The number of people that die due to medical mistakes may be astonishing to many New York blog readers. Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the Unites States.
According to the Journal of Patient Safety, hundreds of thousands of patients sustained some type of injury while in a medical setting, which later contributed to their deaths. There is no exact number, however, the estimated number of patients injured were based on adverse events. A Global Trigger Tool is used by researchers to navigate through patient records. The researchers look for injuries, errors and signs of infection.
The records of injured patients are then reviewed by a doctor to figure out the extent of their injuries. The numbers may actually be higher since the trigger tool does not catch preventable treatment errors. Only a small percentage of negligent care is discovered through a hospital’s reporting system. The vice president of a hospital has stated that there are far too many patients being injured by accidental medical errors and it needs to be fixed.
Even though the numbers are just estimates, the reality is still there that any patient can be at risk of injury due to medical errors. Patient injuries can often times require surgery and in some cases, the patients have died from their injuries. New York victims who have been injured due to medical negligence may be entitled to file medical malpractice claims against the medical facility. Moreover, the surviving families of deceased victims have similar rights under our wrongful death laws.
Source: newyorknow.org, How Many Die From Medical Mistakes In U.S. Hospitals?, No author, Sept. 20, 2013
