Medical Mistakes Predicted by Stress and Fatigue of Doctors

Donald Saiontz

By Donald Saiontz
Posted September 25, 2009

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A new study highlights how personal stress and fatigue among medical residents can lead to medical mistakes and potentially cause devastating injuries for patients.

>>INFORMATION: Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

The report is published in the September 23 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers from the Mayo Clinic looked at stress and fatigue as separate factors in medical errors instead of combining them, as previous studies have done. Scientists involved in the study said their results suggest that distress over things such as burnout, family issues, financial problems and depression should be considered a separate issue from fatigue, which requires its own solutions.

The study looked at 430 internal medicine residents, surveying them from 2003 through 2008. The study asked doctors to score their fatigue, sleepiness and stress and were asked to self report when they made what they considered to be a major medical mistake. Researchers found that as symptoms of fatigue, depression and stress increased, so did the number of major medical mistakes doctors reported.

Recent efforts to make changes to medical training to avoid burnout have focused solely on fatigue, researchers said, which is only addressing part of the problem. The researchers also said that there is very little data on how, exactly, to improve quality of life issues for doctors suffering from distress, so it is unclear at this point what methods would best address the problem. The study’s researchers point out that more studies need to be done on improving such factors, and how they could lead to less medical mistakes.

According to a 1999 report from the Institute of Medicine, nearly 100,000 people in the U.S. die annually from preventable medical mistakes. The report also found that preventable medical errors cost between $17 and $29 billion annually.

In August, the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen found that a number of basic, cost-cutting, patient safety measures such as the use of checklists in surgical procedures, best practices in treatment of ulcers and preventing bedsores and other simple, preventative measures could prevent a large number of doctor errors, regardless of fatigue or stress, and would save an estimated 85,000 lives and $35 billion a year.

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ATTORNEYS

The medical malpractice attorneys at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. investigate potential claims for serious injuries caused by medical mistakes. When a doctor or other healthcare professional fails to give their full time and attention to the patient they are treating, serious and potentially life-threatening injuries can result.

While every medical mistake does not result in a lawsuit for medical malpractice, if you suspect that a mistake or error resulted in a serious physical injury, you can obtain a free consultation to help determine whether financial compensation may be available. To speak with an attorney, request a free claim evaluation.

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