Medical Error Reduction and Prevention

Overview

4.7 out of 5 (249 Reviews)

Credits

2.50

Post Assessment Questions

13

Start Date

1 Sep 2023

Last Review Date

12 Feb 2024

Expiration Date

31 Aug 2026

Estimated Time To Finish

150 Minutes


 
Need Help?  If you have a system or content concerns, please contact support@statpearls.com

Activity Description

Medical errors have more recently been recognized as a serious public health problem, reported as the third leading cause of death in the US. One study reported that approximately 400,000 hospitalized patients experience some preventable harm each year, while another estimated that >200,000 patient deaths annually were due to preventable medical errors. Moreover, medical errors have a high cost, with some experts estimating adverse events costing the healthcare system $20 billion each year and others approximating healthcare costs of $35.7 to $45 billion annually for hospital-acquired infections alone. Medical errors also negatively impact the patient, their family, involved clinicians and support staff, the healthcare facility, and the community. Healthcare professionals may experience profound psychological effects (eg, anger, guilt, inadequacy, depression, and suicidal ideation) due to actual or perceived errors, which the threat of impending legal action may compound.

Uncovering the cause of these errors, as well as providing viable solutions to avoid these errors from occurring, is challenging. However, patient safety can be improved by identifying the contributing factors and events that result in medical errors, developing multifaceted prevention protocols, and implementing these strategies at various healthcare levels. Healthcare professionals should be familiar with the different types of medical errors to understand better the adverse events that may be caused. Common types of medical errors include surgical errors, diagnostic errors, medication errors, equipment failures, patient falls, hospital-acquired infections, and communication failures. By identifying the deficiencies, failures, and risk factors that lead to an adverse event, corrective measures can be developed to prevent similar errors. Encouraging individuals involved in every aspect of healthcare to report medical errors is essential to this process. Confidential reporting options are necessary to identify deficiencies or failures a system may contain. Changing workplace culture and developing protocols for addressing medical errors can encourage medical error reporting. Institutions that adopt a patient safety culture and implement corrective interventions can make healthcare safer for patients and healthcare workers. This activity for healthcare professionals is designed to enhance the learner's understanding of medical errors and the importance of corrective interventions, enabling them to reduce medical error rates and improve patient safety. The course also highlights the interprofessional team's role in performing this analysis to prevent medical errors and improve clinical outcomes. 


Target Audience

This activity has been designed to meet the educational needs of physicians, physician associates, nurses, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, and social workers.

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this activity, the learner will be better able to:

  • Identify the various different types of medical errors and how they can impact patient care.

  • Implement strategies to help improve medical error reporting by clinical providers.

  • Differentiate between active and latent errors, and describe how they differ from adverse events, sentinel events, and never events.

  • Collaborate with an interprofessional team of clinicians, nurses, pharmacists, and education specialists to build a culture of patient safety and improve clinical outcomes.

Disclosures

StatPearls, LLC requires everyone who influences the content of an educational activity to disclose relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies that have occurred within the past 24 months. Ineligible companies are organizations whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. All relevant conflict(s) of interest have been mitigated. Hover over contributor names for financial disclosures. Others involved in planning this educational activity have no relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Commercial Support: This activity has received NO commercial support.

Continuing Education Accreditation Information

In support of improving patient care, StatPearls, LLC is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

 

Nurses: StatPearls designates this activity for 2.50 ANCC contact hour(s). Nurses should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Please consult your professional licensing board for information on the applicability and acceptance of continuing education credit for this activity.

Method of Participation and Credit

  1. Register for the activity.    
  2. Review the target audience, learning objectives, and disclosure information.
  3. Study the educational content of the enduring material.
  4. Choose the best answer to each activity test question. To receive credit and a certificate, you must pass the test questions with a minimum score of 100%.
  5. Complete the post-activity assessment survey.

If you have concerns regarding the CE/CME system, please contact support@statpearls.com.

Disclaimer

This educational activity was planned and produced in accordance with the ACCME Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education. Faculty may discuss investigational products or off-label uses of products regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration. Readers should verify all information before employing any therapies described in this educational activity.

The information provided for this activity is for continuing education purposes only and is not meant to substitute for the independent medical/clinical judgment of a healthcare provider relative to diagnostic and treatment options of a specific patient’s medical condition. The information presented does not necessarily reflect the views of StatPearls or any commercial supporters of educational activities on statpearls.com. StatPearls expressly disclaims responsibility for any adverse consequences resulting directly or indirectly from information in the course, for undetected error, or through a participant's misunderstanding of the content.

Unapproved Uses of Drugs/Devices: In accordance with FDA requirements, the audience is advised that information presented in this continuing education activity may contain references to unlabeled or unapproved uses of drugs or devices. Please refer to the FDA-approved package insert for each drug/device for full prescribing/utilization information.

Cancellation Policy: Please see the cancellation policy. StatPearls, LLC reserves the right to cancel any course due to unforeseen circumstances.

 

 
 

Reviews

Michael S. on 3/16/2021

Guillermina H. on 8/12/2021

John A. on 5/25/2021

Caroline J. on 7/19/2021

Nicholas D. on 11/15/2022

Barbara C. on 8/17/2021

Emmy K. on 3/27/2022

Sunitha P. on 9/24/2021

Stephen w. on 9/30/2021

Mary M. on 10/3/2021

John L. on 10/5/2021

Merry B. on 11/23/2021

John M. on 11/30/2021

Jeffrey J. on 12/1/2021

Thomas C. on 12/7/2021

Terri C. on 12/24/2021

Emile D. on 12/27/2021

Adele L. on 12/29/2021

Lisa S. on 1/11/2022

Olga M. on 1/15/2022

Tiffany N. on 1/26/2022

devin n. on 3/14/2022

Amy D. on 5/3/2022

Marlena I. on 5/16/2022

I am pleased with the challenge the self assessment questions provide in the format of a case study. It helps to apply the information read in the article.

Sally B. on 6/4/2022

Rachel W. on 6/18/2022

Christopher B. on 6/22/2022

Shannon j. on 6/26/2022

Alessandra T. on 6/26/2022

chandra d. on 6/28/2022

Eric K. on 7/16/2022

Vanessa P. on 7/26/2022

Mandy E. on 7/27/2022

Laray H. on 7/27/2022

Course helpful

Olusenu A. on 10/2/2022

Yuliya N. on 7/30/2022

Navinder S. on 8/2/2022

tammy d. on 8/3/2022

Fernando E. on 8/4/2022

Elizabeth f. on 8/16/2022

Matthew L. on 8/20/2022

Theressa R. on 8/25/2022

Melissa B. on 8/27/2022

Paolo C. on 8/28/2022

Nandini K. on 8/30/2022

Lennox D. on 8/29/2022

Paulomi P. on 9/3/2022

April D. on 9/3/2022

Chelsea A. on 9/7/2022

RODOLFO L. on 9/10/2022

nesly c. on 9/11/2022

Nima A. on 9/14/2022

nothing

Madison K. on 9/13/2022

The website is a bit cumbersome, but I finally figured it out. It is not intuitive. The class though was quite easy to navigate however.

Brynne K. on 9/14/2022

Jody S. on 9/14/2022

Justin C. on 9/23/2022

Kirsten M. on 9/27/2022

Shawn A. on 9/28/2022

Stacia P. on 9/30/2022

Stacey E. on 9/30/2022

jaime r. on 10/8/2022

Susian P. on 10/3/2022

Shay P. on 10/7/2022

on 10/25/2022

Audrey A. on 10/10/2022

William L. on 10/13/2022

Marissa L. on 10/17/2022

Cheyenne H. on 11/10/2022

Dwayne W. on 11/14/2022

David B. on 11/18/2022

Informative

Julia R. on 11/29/2022

yoyma l. on 12/7/2022

Muammar A. on 12/8/2022

Michael F. on 12/11/2022

Premranjan S. on 12/11/2022

Jason H. on 12/11/2022

Elizabeth M. on 12/14/2022

Rondalph T. on 12/15/2022

Richard S. on 12/18/2022

As a primary care provider it gave me new knowledge and perspective .It will be a first for me to create such action plans.

john a. on 12/20/2022

Michelle M. on 12/20/2022

Christy B. on 12/20/2022

Allison A. on 12/22/2022

Vektra C. on 12/26/2022

William M. on 12/26/2022

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Donald S. on 1/1/2023

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ANGELA P. on 2/11/2023

Lesly P. on 2/7/2023

Kerrin L. on 2/6/2023

Brandi M. on 2/9/2023

Gabriela H. on 2/12/2023

Dong O. on 3/3/2023

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robert p. on 3/20/2023

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margaret a. on 7/22/2023

Anne D. on 8/2/2023

LIGAYA B. on 7/30/2023

Logan R. on 8/4/2023

I found some of the content confusing. For example, there was a section that said how much money errors cost. Right after, a different dollar amount was given, without explanation of the discrepancy

Laura G. on 8/8/2023

Erik l. on 8/11/2023

Sunil P. on 8/13/2023

Grace A. on 8/21/2023

Ali S. on 8/29/2023

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asi y. on 9/8/2023

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Zain A. on 9/16/2023

CHAULA P. on 9/19/2023

Ogechukwu U. on 9/26/2023

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wasim s. on 10/4/2023

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Bhavi M. on 11/2/2023

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MICHELLE H. on 12/31/2023

fine sample clinical cases

DANIEL F. on 12/31/2023

I’ve always liked PowerPoint presentations, and I think you’ve veered away from that. If my recollection is correct, you used to have some amazing PowerPoint presentations.

Jennifer T. on 1/1/2024

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