One problem within the healthcare system that is often overlooked is the preventable medical errors. Medical errors are defined as the preventable outcomes that result from a wrong plan or failure of a planned action to be completed. The main categories of medical errors are operative, drug-related, diagnostic, procedure related and others. What makes this more alarming is that the numbers seem to be rising over the years. In 1999, the statistics indicated that at least 44000 people and perhaps as many as 98,000 people died in hospitals each year as a result of medical errors. Today, the number of people dying due to medical errors each year is approximately 200,000. In addition to death, medical errors cost the United States a lot of unnecessary
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Communication within a healthcare system involves communication among the healthcare providers and between the provider and the patient. The problem could involve either miscommunication or lack of it, which results in errors such as mis-documentation, inaccurate diagnostic tests and treatment options and non-adherence by the patient. When healthcare providers do not effectively communicate, it is impossible for them to provide effective care. In addition, practitioner- patient relationship is important because the patient needs to be able to understand the problems and take part in the decision making process. This motivates the patient to adhere better to the care plan and to consult the healthcare provider whenever there is a problem, without any hesitation. One problem that contributes to poor provider-patient relationship is the language barrier. The language barrier in itself may cause medical errors because the patients may not be able to fully express themselves to the providers, or they may not fully understand the instructions from the provider. However some of the errors also result …show more content…
It involves true collaboration and willingness to work together. One way to improve communication is by educating the providers on the importance of relying on each other. When it comes to providing effective care to the patient, no provider is superior to the other. It is critical for each provider to understand the role of each member of the team. This can be carried out by creating in weekly, biweekly or monthly seminars, activity sessions or seminars in which each provider can clearly learn about the role of the other providers. This would be more significant in non-hospital settings such because different providers who do not work together face-to-face on a daily basis can be able to work together. This system is more efficient than the current system that advices and encourages team work. By involving them in activities together, the health care providers understand the roles of the other providers, appreciate each other and become more willing to work together as a team. In addition, a limitation to effective communication is fear. Some providers fail to correct other people 's mistakes because of fear of being wrong, being secluded from the group or simply because they are presumed to have a more significant role in the patient care process. These activities will also help eliminate the fear between the healthcare providers by educating them on the equality of all the
Communication within a healthcare system involves communication among the healthcare providers and between the provider and the patient. The problem could involve either miscommunication or lack of it, which results in errors such as mis-documentation, inaccurate diagnostic tests and treatment options and non-adherence by the patient. When healthcare providers do not effectively communicate, it is impossible for them to provide effective care. In addition, practitioner- patient relationship is important because the patient needs to be able to understand the problems and take part in the decision making process. This motivates the patient to adhere better to the care plan and to consult the healthcare provider whenever there is a problem, without any hesitation. One problem that contributes to poor provider-patient relationship is the language barrier. The language barrier in itself may cause medical errors because the patients may not be able to fully express themselves to the providers, or they may not fully understand the instructions from the provider. However some of the errors also result …show more content…
It involves true collaboration and willingness to work together. One way to improve communication is by educating the providers on the importance of relying on each other. When it comes to providing effective care to the patient, no provider is superior to the other. It is critical for each provider to understand the role of each member of the team. This can be carried out by creating in weekly, biweekly or monthly seminars, activity sessions or seminars in which each provider can clearly learn about the role of the other providers. This would be more significant in non-hospital settings such because different providers who do not work together face-to-face on a daily basis can be able to work together. This system is more efficient than the current system that advices and encourages team work. By involving them in activities together, the health care providers understand the roles of the other providers, appreciate each other and become more willing to work together as a team. In addition, a limitation to effective communication is fear. Some providers fail to correct other people 's mistakes because of fear of being wrong, being secluded from the group or simply because they are presumed to have a more significant role in the patient care process. These activities will also help eliminate the fear between the healthcare providers by educating them on the equality of all the