More Than 50 Percent of Physicians Admit to Making Diagnostic Errors
According to a survey conducted by the medical journal Pediatrics, more than 50% of physicians admitted making a diagnostic error at least once or twice per month. More than thirteen hundred professionals participated in the confidential survey, with more than 45% also admitting that their errors had actually harmed patients. The frequency of error for trainees was 77 percent. The most common errors were, failure to evaluate a patient’s history, failure to conduct a physical exam, and failure to chart a review of treatment. The survey also identified a lack of patient care coordination and teamwork as a cause of medical system failure.
