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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 23 July 2007 21:38 |
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About 1/3 of doctors surveyed recently reported that they had experienced medical errors in care for themselves or for a family member. A similar proportion of the public reported the same thing. About ½ of those experiencing errors (doctors and the public alike) described them as serious. More than 60% of patients surveyed in this survey believed that hospitals should be required to report preventable medical errors publicly and more than 80% believed that doctors should be required to do so. The proportions were 14% and 22% respectively for physicians. Is it odd that physicians still see themselves as protecting their colleagues who make mistakes? Perhaps not. Perhaps the doctor is thinking to himself "I could make that mistake too." By definition, that is a selfish point of view, not a charitable one, especially when considering that it is the public that is victimized by the secrecy and failure to disclose errors. Source: Medical Errors: Practicing Physician and Public Views, Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard School of Public Health. |
Doctor's Attitudes