Effects Of Medical Malpractice In Healthcare

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Malpractice in healthcare A tort is generally defined as a civil wrong which causes an injury. “Medical malpractice refers to professional negligence by a health care professional or provider in which treatment provided was substandard, and caused harm, injury or death to a patient” (Nordqvist). Meaning medical malpractice is a tort. The lack of media coverage on medical malpractice has made the public unaware of how stern this problem is becoming. It’s a serious issue that needs to be brought to light. Many lose loved ones because of a mistake caused by certain healthcare professionals. A wide variety of situations can lead to a medical malpractice claim. From failing to tell the patients the side effects of a prescribed medication to leaving …show more content…

A misdiagnosis occurs when a doctor fails to recognize symptoms, instead they attribute them to another illness. Thus, the original illness may go untreated. This can cause the symptoms to worsen. While the patient is taking medicine that’s supposedly supposed to make them feel better, it can worsen the disease. By the time they find out that they are taking the wrong medication, it can be too late and the illness most likely will have gotten to the point where it may be too late to treat. For example, “A doctor in a hospital fails to recognize cardiac tamponade in a 63-year-old man, and the lack of diagnosis or treatment leads to his death” (Morgan & Morgan). A few months ago, my mother got into a car accident. She went to the doctor and complained of neck pain. The doctor told her that she just needed to rest and it was just a minor issue. A few weeks later, she returned to the hospital because the pain just seemed to worsen. After conducting a few tests, the doctor then found out that she had a compression fracture. As a result, she had to go to physical therapy. Doctors make mistakes and it’s up to the patient to let them know when they fear that something is bothering them. Per the United States National Practitioner Data Banks, the highest medical malpractice rate of 70% comes from physicians. While dentists carry 13% and nurses carry 9%. Malpractice in healthcare is a serious issue that should be taken seriously. According to the American Journal of Medicine, each year up to 15 percent of patients suffer needlessly as a result of wrong diagnoses, which include misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis.

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