- February 18, 2021
- Steve Heisler
- Senior Injuries
A recent study by Johns Hopkins asserts that over 250,000 people in the United States die from medical errors every year. Other studies put the number to be more than 440,000. By the way, medical errors are now the third-largest cause of death in the United States, according to the CDC. The CDC also states that many of these cases are not due to bad doctors. Instead, a majority of these cases are because of the systems that we currently have in place in our healthcare industry. For instance, poorly coordinated care could be one reason this number is so incredibly high.
Poorly Coordinated Care
Poorly coordinated care means that a person does not have a well-established relationship with a doctor. Especially for people with chronic diseases, coordinated care will be critical for a proper diagnosis and proper ways to handle that diagnosis. In a health care survey of eleven high-income countries, the rate of poor primary care was significantly higher in the United States than in the other ten countries. The United States has a 9.8 poor primary care rate. When patients have a positive relationship with their doctor, they are less likely to report a poor primary care rate. As you can see, this is causing many problems in our country – including the failure to diagnose cancer.
Diagnosis Errors
According to HG.org, diagnosis errors affect 20% of medical cases in the United States. Sadly, we don’t think about what is going on in our healthcare system. Many times, people blindly trust what people in the hospital tell them. Unfortunately, that could be a life-threatening decision. Diagnosis errors can comprise of a missed diagnosis or a delayed diagnosis; both can have significant consequences for the patient. So, let’s talk about how many people in this country are impacted by the failure to diagnose, delayed diagnosis, or a cancer misdiagnosis.
Cancer Diagnosis Errors and Malpractice Cases
Approximately 40,000 cancer patients die annually due to failure to diagnose, misdiagnosis, or delayed diagnosis. Is the failure to diagnose and misdiagnosis of cancer considered medical negligence or medical malpractice? It depends on the situation. In your case of misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose, it may not be clear if the standard of care has been met by a medical professional. The standard of care means the level of care that the average, prudent medical professional in the given community would give to a patient However, you should always make sure you talk to a medical malpractice attorney and have it investigated. If you have a case for medical malpractice because of a failure to diagnose, misdiagnosis, or delayed diagnosis, that means something really, really bad has happened to you.
The Importance Of Getting A Second Opinion
If you are ever skeptical about what a doctor is telling you, then always get that second or third opinion again because you don’t want to have a medical malpractice case on your hands. If you trust your doctor, ask them to refer you to a second physician or a specialty doctor that would know a lot about your case. When you think you have a cancer diagnosis, that will be a massive reason to get another opinion. The more opinions you have from different specialists, the better you will be able to make an educated and informed decision about what you or your loved one should do next. Plus, the more you know about a potential cancer diagnosis, the better your chances are of receiving the most appropriate treatment.
Many people do not get a second opinion because they are afraid of offending their doctor. However, this should not be the case! Remember, your life is on the line, and medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States. Do you want to be part of that statistic – no way! If anything, your doctor should be happy that you are getting a second opinion. That way, they can help you with treatment and allow you to have peace of mind and reassurance that you are doing the right thing. A massive red flag is if your doctor is offended about wanting another opinion – this probably means they are not as competent as you may think! If you found this blog helpful, we have loads of other resources on our website. To find out more about the National Injured Senior Law Center or to set up a free consultation, go to https://www.injuredseniorhotline.com/ or call 855-622-6530