Medical Malpractice and Diagnostic Mistakes

Diagnosis is the medical process of determining which conditions or illnesses are causing a patient’s symptoms. Errors during surgery accounted for 24% of medical error claims, and errors in medical management accounted for 14% of the claims.

A new study found that diagnostic errors were the largest part of medical malpractice claims during the years 2013-2017, per Modern HealthCare. The study found that one-third (1/3) of medical malpractice claims were made during the diagnosis phase of medical care.

The clinical malpractice study

Converys published the report, which analyzed 10,618 malpractice claims during the five-year time span. In more 36% of diagnostic-related claims, the patient died. (Interestingly, 36% of the diagnosis claims involved outpatient care, as well.)

The study found the following types of diagnostic errors:

• Failure to properly evaluate the patient. This failure included not taking a full family history.
• Failure to conduct or review lab tests such as imaging tests and blood tests. The medical mistakes included ordering the wrong test, not conducting the test properly, or not reading the results of the tests correctly. About 52% of all diagnostic errors fell into this category, and 14% of the malpractice claims were brought against radiologists.

The study backs up earlier findings from Johns Hopkins from 2013:

In reviewing 25 years of U.S. malpractice claim payouts, Johns Hopkins researchers found that diagnostic errors — not surgical mistakes or medication overdoses — accounted for the largest fraction of claims, the most severe patient harm, and the highest total of penalty payouts. Diagnosis-related payments amounted to $38.8 billion between 1986 and 2010, they found.

Overall, the Converys study reasoned that direct communication is likely to reduce diagnostic mistakes. Doctors and specialists who are overworked, or whose specific jobs make them more solitary in their work, were more likely to commit diagnostic errors. The Hopkins study did not posit a solution, but encouraged additional study.

Robert Hanscom, one of the report’s authors, stated that doctors should be encouraged to say they don’t know and seek help rather than make a wrong conclusion. “There needs to be an environment where doctors can be more open about uncertainties around diagnosis. People expect doctors to know everything but sometimes they aren’t certain,” he said.

Common diagnostic errors

An incorrect or delayed diagnosis usually means the patient doesn’t get the treatment he/she needs, or receives the wrong treatment instead. Diagnostic errors are common in the following medical conditions:

• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Infections
• Influenza
• Lung disorders

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