Prescription medications provide a wide range of benefits. Some medications, for instance, help regulate blood pressure or fight infections, while others can assist in managing pain. Unfortunately, taking prescription medications can also be dangerous if the wrong type or dosage is prescribed. This is a surprisingly common scenario and can…
Obtaining treatment for a health problem isn’t always as easy as going to the family doctor. While this may have been a common practice in the past, most patients who suffer from serious conditions are now expected to see a specialist, visit a lab or testing facility, or receive treatment…
Medication errors are one of the leading types of medical malpractice, causing thousands of deaths a year and untold injuries. If you or a loved one is taking prescription drugs, you need to be sure you are receiving the right drugs at the right doses. Many problems can arise when…
A recent study has found that sleep deprivation can lead to a significant uptick in medical errors committed by physicians. The study published in JAMA Network Open in December shows that even moderate deprivation was associated with a meaningful uptick in errors. Given how exhausted many residents and doctors are,…
A cancer researcher died recently because of a nurse’s shocking medical error. According to the South Bend Tribune, David Boothman died when a nurse at an Indianapolis hospital administered a massive dose of the opioid fentanyl instead of hydrating solution, which she intended to administer. Boothman, age 61, had suffered…
Surgery is invasive, and many people suffer from complications even when surgery has been a success. For example, if a doctor must cut open your chest, then it is unsurprising that you might lose sensation in the nerves near the point of entry. Nevertheless, some nerve damage is the result…
There are many reasons why doctors make mistakes. For some, improper training is to blame. Other doctors are under the influence of a drug or alcohol addiction and can make sloppy mistakes because they are not thinking clearly. Still other medical malpractice errors stem from inadequate communication or improper procedures…
The adoption of electronic health records, or EHR, was supposed to decrease the number of medication errors. But a new study reported by UPI has shown that these systems still miss up to a third of dangerous drug interactions, and patients can suffer terrible injuries as a result. The test…
A doctor’s letter to the New York Times contains a startling admission: hospitals have made many errors while treating patients during the recent coronavirus pandemic. And some of the errors can cause serious injury or possibly result in death. Because doctors rarely admit that they make mistakes, this is a…
A study out of the United Kingdom shows that women prescribed certain antibiotics were much more likely to have children with major birth defects. This study has confirmed what many doctors have already suspected—that these antibiotics, if given in the first trimester, can lead to devastating consequences. If you have…
