It would probably come as a great shock to most people that the leading cause of accidental death in America is from medical mistakes. Experts estimate that as many as 98,000 people die from preventable medical errors each year. That doesn’t include the estimated 99,000 patients who die each year from hospital-acquired infections. Those estimates may not tell the entire story because there has been no definitive study despite the staggering numbers.
Ten years ago a federal report called the death toll shocking and challenged the medical community to cut the numbers in half within five years. Instead, experts believe the rate of medical errors is increasing. The report also called for a mandatory national reporting system of medical errors. After swift and multi-million dollar opposition from the AMA and the American Hospital Association, the call for a mandatory public system was killed. We see similar opposition based on the threat of massive costs in the health care reform debate. The AMA now says it supports a voluntary national reporting system and the AHA prefers private error reporting.
Today, as the nation struggles with the issue of cost of health care reform, perhaps now is the best time to include hospital safety in the debate and make it a priority so fewer families will have to cope with the consequences of medical negligence.
Richard J. Arsenault, 2011
