Landmark 1999 Institute of Medicine Study
« Back to From the Desk of Bruce J. Klores, Esquire
In 1999 the prestigious Institute of Medicine reported that as many as 98,000 deaths occurred each year from medical errors. This is a staggering statistic, not only because of the number of deaths, but also because of their preventability. This is the equivalent of over 200 747s crashing each year. We all know that the Government would never allow that type of safety record to continue in the airline industry, nor would United or American be able to survive if their planes weren’t safe. Why do hospitals? Recently Medicare has gone on record that it will no longer pay for a variety of complications that take place in the hospital due to errors. It is thought that by hitting the hospitals and health care industry where it hurts, i.e., their pocket books, that medical errors will begin to diminish.
My Impression:
Unless and until state medical societies begin to police the conduct of their profession and rid themselves of bad doctors, these numbers will not become appreciably lower. If you have a bad experience with your physician, contact your local medical society. A listing of state medical societies is available at www.docboard.org.
September 14, 2007
