When patients sign consent forms prior to surgery, they often don’t read the fine print. Even if they do, they can’t imagine every scenario that would fall under the things to which they’ve given their consent. In some cases, these might involve undefined procedures...
Medical Malpractice
Erb’s palsy: 2 times when it’s your doctor’s fault
Erb's Palsy, also known as brachial plexus palsy, occurs when the brachial plexus – a network of nerves near the neck – is damaged during childbirth, whether through stretching, compression or tearing. This injury can lead to varying degrees of impairment in a child’s...
Inadequate hospital cybersecurity can prove fatal to patients
Cyberattacks, also known as ransomware attacks, are disrupting operations in all kinds of businesses and other organizations. Hackers can demand hundreds of thousands of dollars and more in “ransom” to give these organizations back access to, and control over, their...
What exactly does “patient safety” mean?
Patient safety is a concept that aims to prevent and minimize risks of harm that occur to patients as they’re receiving medical care. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines patient safety as “the absence of preventable harm to a patient and reduction of risk of...
Premature discharge and medical malpractice
A hospital discharge is a process a patient goes through when leaving a hospital after treatment. It involves several steps to ensure a patient is discharged safely. These include a healthcare provider confirming the patient no longer needs to be in the hospital to...
What is healthcare cognitive bias and why does it matter?
Healthcare cognitive bias refers to the systematic ways in which the thinking and judgment of healthcare professionals can be influenced, leading to deviations from good decision-making or best practices. Put another way, it’s a phenomenon in which a healthcare...
Can pharmaceutical companies be charged with medical malpractice?
We live in an era where advanced medicine is helping people live longer, healthier lives. Diseases that at one time would have meant certain death, can be managed with a daily pill. We look to our physicians to recommend pharmaceuticals that have been thoroughly...
Communication errors in a hospital setting
Medical malpractice happens for numerous different reasons. In some cases, doctors just make negligent mistakes. They could also make an incorrect diagnosis or miss a diagnosis that they should’ve made. Many different types of medical malpractice can cause serious...
What to know about failure to refer
When a patient visits a doctor, a serious problem that is out of the physician's expertise may be uncovered. For example, a patient may visit a doctor because of a migraine, but tests can show signs of a brain tumor. In such an instance, the doctor is required to...
How understaffing can lead to medical malpractice
Different factors contribute to medical malpractice, including understaffing. Staffing shortage is an issue affecting several departments in healthcare facilities. Even though the nursing department is widely discussed, rightfully so, some hospitals understaff...