Patients walk out of hospitals with more harm than help

Negligence in patient safety is the third leading cause of deaths worldwide as patients walk out of hospitals having had more harm done than good.

Mistakes, errors and sometimes lack of knowledge is the cause of over 400 000 deaths. This is the third highest cause of loss of life after heart disease and cancer.

The costs are said to be over $1 trillion a year.

This, according to delegates who attended the briefing at World Innovation Summit for Health in Doha, Qatar said that is influenced by the culture of secrecy.

The delegates agreed that the lack of publishing mistakes and errors is the root of the elevation of deaths because nurses and doctors do not learn from each other.

According to Professor Mary Dixon-Woods, not everything could be learned from the book and the lack of sharing of experiences in the healthcare sector is not helping.

“We can’t even share anything, even if you have solutions to a problem you can’t share. Well unless you publish in medical journals,” she said.

In an attempt to receive medical care, many patients walk out of hospitals with even more injuries than when they first walked in.

Professor The Lord Darzi of Denham, Executive Chair of WISH, said: “Estimates show that in developed countries as many as one in 10 patients are harmed while receiving hospital care. Our report reveals that patient safety is not just a personal responsibility for patients and doctors to tackle themselves, but it is also a major policy issue.”

Peter J Pronovost said that there is a general misconception in the healthcare sector that heroic qualities are needed in order to save lives.

“The idea that saving patients’ lives demands heroism is also a harmful misconception about health and medicine seen in popular culture. In the real-world, the true heroes are not just rescuing patients, they are voicing their concerns and taking proactive measures to reduce the risks, before a patient is potentially put in harm’s way,” he said.