Most successful medical treatment begins with a proper diagnosis. Before health care professionals can adequately address an individual’s symptoms, they must understand what causes those symptoms.
A persistent dry cough could be the result of allergies or an early warning sign of cancer. Doctors have access to laboratory tests, imaging systems and a host of other medical technologies that can facilitate an accurate and rapid diagnosis. Unfortunately, despite advances in technology, diagnostic errors are still relatively common.
How frequently do doctors make diagnostic mistakes?
It is effectively impossible to accurately estimate every diagnostic error that occurs, as some escape the notice of both the doctor and the patient. Researchers generally estimate that between 10 and 15% of patients who seek care in any given year experience a diagnostic error.
Some diagnostic errors involve misdiagnosis. A physician hears a patient’s symptoms and reaches the wrong conclusion, such as diagnosing what turns out to be lung cancer as a simple case of bronchitis.
Other diagnostic errors involve the failure to diagnose a patient. Choosing not to order tests, ignoring patient-reported symptoms and making other, similar oversights can result in doctors failing to diagnose the condition that another medical professional could have identified.
Diagnostic errors may result in a delay in receiving care in some cases. Other times, they can lead to patients undergoing the wrong treatment. If another doctor could have reached the right diagnosis, then the error that occurred could constitute malpractice.
Anyone harmed by medical malpractice may potentially have grounds to hold a doctor or their employer accountable. Reviewing medical records with a medical malpractice attorney can help patients determine if they are in a strong position to take legal action.