Surgical Never Events Essay

Often, people in New York, and elsewhere, require surgery to relieve the symptoms of certain conditions, repair internal damage or address other ailments. When they go in for such procedures, patients put their lives and their health in their surgeons’ hands. Unfortunately, however, surgery errors commonly occur, putting patients at risk for worsened conditions, additional medical problems or death. All too often, such mistakes are preventable.

What are surgical never events?

There is a group of surgical errors, which are believed to be completely avoidable. Since they are considered preventable, these mistakes are often referred to as surgical never events. This is because they should never happen. However, surgical never events do occur

almost 80 times each week across the U.S., according to American Medical News.

A number of medical mistakes are classified as surgical never events. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality points out that some of the most common of these include the following:

• Performing surgery on the wrong body part
• Unintentionally leaving a foreign object in a patient
• Executing a procedure on the wrong patient
• Performing the wrong procedure

Additionally, administering the wrong medication, the wrong dosage or contaminated medications may also be considered surgical never events.

How do surgical never events affect patients?

Patients who experience this type of medical negligence may suffer a range of effects. Surgical never events may cause broken bones, infections or sepsis, among other conditions. This may be especially dangerous for those who are already suffering from serious medical ailments. As a result of these effects, patients may require additional medical treatment and, in some cases, they may to undergo subsequent surgical procedures. Sometimes, the effects of surgical never events may cause death for patients.

What causes surgical never events?

Preventable surgical mistakes may be caused by a number of factors. According to the Mayo Clinic, poor hand-offs, distractions, stress and mental fatigue are all common contributors. Additionally, poor communication also frequently plays a part in causing surgical never events.

These types of mistakes may also occur as a result of issues at the facility level. When medical professionals bend, brake or fail to understand the rules, it may result in preventable surgical errors. Furthermore, inadequate supervision, not enough staff and problems with the operational processes may also lead to surgical never

events.

Obtaining legal guidance

When surgical never events occur in New York, and elsewhere, the effects may be devastating for patients. They may incur unexpected medical costs and, in some cases, may be forced to take additional time off of work to recover. This may lead to lost wages, which may affect their ability to support their families. If these mistakes could have been prevented, the health care professional responsible may be held liable for these, and other damages. Therefore, those who have experienced this type of surgical mistake may benefit from consulting with an attorney to understand their rights for seeking financial compensation.