Medical errors: a common problem

doi:10.1136/bmj.322.7285.501

BMJ 2001;322:501-502 ( 3 March )

Editorials

Medical errors: a common problem

It is time to get serious about them

Papers p 517 Letters p 548 Reviews pp 562, 563

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Medical errors continue to dominate newspaper headlines. There is rarely an informed comment on likelihood or cause, rathera tacit assumption that they should never happen $---$ and an implicitconclusion that they are getting more common. What is the truth?Firstly, errors have always happened. Secondly, there has beenno clear indication as to how common they are in the United Kingdom $---$ thougha pilot study in this week's issue represents a first attemptto quantify the size of the problem (p 517).¹ Alongside thisis the difficulty of indicating risk. To a bereaved relative theknowledge that there was a 1 in 1000 risk is no consolation $---$ forthem it was 1 in 1. In a country where millions are spent everyweek on the national lottery the concept of risk is obviouslyalien. What is clear, however, is both that we need to know moreabout errors and to do more . . . [Full text of this article]

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