Medical Error In Health Care

Medical errors occur with such frequency and regularity that most states require periodic, ongoing medical education for all health care providers as part of their licensing requirement. Hundreds of thousands of patients are victims of medical errors each year and many of them suffer from permanent disabilities as a result, some even die. In its report, To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) estimates that 44,000 to 98,000 Americans die each year not from the medical conditions they checked in with, but from preventable medical errors (Nordenberg, 2000).

A medical error, under the report 's definition, could mean a health-care provider chose an inappropriate method of care or it could mean the health provider chose the
(2006). Bioethics: A systematic approach (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University PressInstitute for Safe Medicine Practices (ISMP). (2000). Discussion paper on adverse event and error reporting in healthcare. Retrieved August 2, 2007, from http://www.ismp.org/Tools/whitepapers/concept.aspNational Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention (NCC MERP). (2007). About medication errors. Retrieved August 2, 2007, from http://www.nccmerp.org/aboutMedErrors.htmlNordenberg, T. (2000). Make no Mistake: Medical errors can be deadly serious. Retrieved August 2, 2007, from http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2000/500_err.htmlPalosky, C., Peacock, C. & Holland, H. (2004). Five years after IOM report on medical errors, nearly half of all consumers worry about the safety of their health care. Retrieved August 2, 2007, from http://www.kff.org/kaiserpolls/pomr111704nr.cfmWeingart, S.N., Wilson, R.M., Gibberd, R.W., & Harrison, B. (2000). Epidemiology of medical error. BMJ. 320(7237): 774-777Woo, A., Ranji, U. & Salganicoff, A. (2006). Reducing medical errors. Retrieved August 2, 2007, from