When something goes wrong and our health declines, we turn to medical professionals. Men and women who have spent countless years of their lives pursuing the knowledge to treat what ails us. We trust our lives, and the lives of our loved ones, in their care when things get tough. That makes the topic of medical error and medical malpractice a tough one.
Sometimes things go very wrong. Sometimes the doctors you trust don’t provide the level of medical care that you deserve. What happens then?
Medical Errors are the Third Leading Cause of Death in Our Country
Only a few years ago, a shocking study was released by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine, a leader in the medical world. And yes, you read that right. According to the study, medical errors are now the third leading cause of death in the United States. For context, that’s higher than deaths caused from respiratory disease, which kills around 150,000 people every year.
- More than 250,000 deaths per year are caused by medical error in our country
- The risk of patient death caused by a preventable medical accident is estimated at 1 in 300
More than a quarter of a million. It’s shocking and scary to see these numbers. It’s especially shocking considering that we trust our lives to our medical professionals. To cure us. To keep us from death. The thought of them being the cause of death is unbearable.
Medical Error: A Massive Problem
It’s not only an issue for our country. According to the World Health Organization:
- 1 out of every 7 Canadian dollars is spent treating the effects of patient harm in their medical care
Even in countries with some of the most advanced medical care in the world, the problem of life-threatening medical error persists. These preventable mistakes are costing us thousands and thousands of lives and billions of dollars every single year.
- Medication errors alone are estimated to cost our country $42 billion every year. That’s not counting lost wages or healthcare costs.
Why Is It a Problem?
Healthcare is incredibly important. We are blessed to be in a country that has some of the greatest medical conditions in the world. We are surrounded by brilliant doctors who want nothing but the best for their patients. However, the numbers tell us that we can’t just sit back and expect everything will be taken care of.
It’s an issue that goes far beyond the doctors and nurses that take care of us. The study from Johns Hopkins shows that the issue goes far above the medical professionals we interact with. In fact, most medical errors aren’t due to bad doctors at all. They’re due to much more pervasive problems, like poor hospital coordination, the complex world of insurance and a lack of proper safety protocols being in place.
I don’t want to scare you, I just want you to know the facts. Nobody should have to deal with being harmed or even killed while under hospital care. That’s why we need to bring attention to this issue and make life-saving changes. In the meantime, we can only take a vested interest in our care and push for medical reform.
Contact the Brooks Law Group
Medical malpractice lawsuits are tough. As I’ve said, we don’t want to believe that our healthcare industry let us down or caused more harm than good. Sadly, it happens. If you believe that you or a loved one has been adversely affected by the medical field, you may have a case for a medical malpractice suit.
You may need the services of a law firm with more than 25 years of service fighting for the rights of clients who were harmed by medical errors and medical malpractice. Our team of staff and attorneys are here to get you back on your feet with the financial compensation that you need. Call our offices at 1-800-LAW-3030 or fill out our online Contact Us form today for a free case evaluation. Don’t wait, reach out today!
