Adverse events may cost NHS £1bn a year

In contrast to the United States and Australia, little is known about adverse patient events in the United Kingdom. On p 517 Vincent et al report a preliminary study of adverse events in two London hospitals. They found that 10.8% of patients experienced adverse events, and the overall rate of events was 11.7% when multiple events were included. A third of these events resulted in moderate or severe impairment, and around half were judged preventable. The authors estimate that the cost of additional bed days for the preventable events was over £290 000 and that the bill for such events throughout the NHS could be around £1bn a year.


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Relevant Article

Adverse events in British hospitals: preliminary retrospective record review
Charles Vincent, Graham Neale, and Maria Woloshynowych
BMJ 2001 322: 517-519. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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