Patients often experience anxiety before surgical operations. You certainly don’t want to dwell on the possibility of your surgeon making a life-altering mistake while you’re under anesthesia, especially after you’ve come to terms with the fact that the surgery is essential to your health. But errors do occur.
Amputating the wrong limb or operating on the wrong organ are not the only examples of wrong-site surgical errors. This can also mean that the wrong patient or section of the body was operated on during the procedure. This leads patients to question how such a serious error can happen.
What the research says
Researchers analyzed closed medical malpractice claims related to wrong-site surgeries spanning 7 years to understand why these events persist despite numerous efforts by organizations like The Joint Commission to reduce them. They concluded that the main reasons for wrong-site surgeries stem from the following:
- Problems with policy adherence
- Not reading medical records
- Lack of surgical care management
- Inconsistent procedure documentation
- Lack of provider-to-provider communication
Simple procedures to prevent mistakes in surgical operations should always be enacted. These include:
- Verifying that you have the correct patient
- Marking the patient’s surgical site before operating
- Conducting cross-checks with your surgical team
Communication is key between patient and surgeon and between surgeon and medical assistants who will be helping with the surgery.
What to do if you are a victim of a wrong-site surgical error
When inadequate surgical preparation and care result in serious harm or death, seeking compensation by filing a medical malpractice claim is the next course of action. You will need to secure documentation and witnesses to support your claim. The best way to work through this process is to seek assistance.