Medication Errors in Family Practice,in Hospitals and after Discharge from the Hospital: An Ethical Analysis

Kohn L.T. Corrigan J.M. Donaldson M.S. , eds., To Err Is Human: Building A Safer Health Care System. (Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 1999)

Hayward R. Hofer T.P. , “Estimating Hospital Deaths Due To Medical Errors: Preventability Is In The Eye Of The Reviewer,” JAMA 286, no. 4 (2001): 415–420.

McDonald C.J. Weiner M. Hui S.L. , “Deaths Due To Medical Errors Are Exaggerated In Institute of Medicine Report,” JAMA 284, no. 2 (2000): 93–95.

Leape L. , “Institute of Medicine Medical Errors Figures Are Not Exaggerated,” JAMA 284, no. 2 (2000): 95–97.

Migdail K. , Medical Errors: The Scope OF The Problem Fact Sheet, Publication No. AHRQ 0O-P037 (February 2000): 1–4, available at <http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/errback.htm> (last visited April 5, 2004).

Id. at 1.

Id. at 1–2.

Medical Malpractice Referral Network, “Medical Malpractice Lawyer,” at <http://www.medical-malpractice-lawyers-attorneys.com>, at 1.

Editorial, “Errors That Kill Medical Patients,” New York Times, December 18, 2002, 23.

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Forster A.J. Murff H.J. Peterson J. , “The Incidence and Severity of Adverse Events Affecting Patients After Discharge from The Hospital,” Annals of Internal Medicine 138, no. 3 (2003): 161–168.

Migdail , supra note 5, at 1.

Id. at 2.

Kohn , supra note 1, at 2.

Dovey , supra note 10, at 233–238.

Lazarou J. Pomeranz B. Corey P. , “Incidence Of Adverse Drug Reactions In Hospitalized Patients,” JAMA 279, no. 15 (1998): 1200–1205.

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Nordenberg T. , “Make No Mistake: Medical Errors Can Be Deadly Serious,” FDA Consumer Magazine (2000): 1–8, available at <http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2000/500_err.html>.

Forster , supra note 11, at 165.

Id. at 164–165.

Id. at 166.

Kohn supra note 1.

Brennan T. , “The Institute of Medicine Report on Medical Errors: Could It Do Harm?” N. Eng. J. Med. 342, no. 15 (2000): 1123–1125.

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Leape L. , “Reporting of Adverse Events,” N. Eng. J. Med. 347, no. 20 (2002): 1633–1638; see also, Flowers L. Riley T. , “State-Based Mandatory Reporting of Medical Errors: An Analysis of the Legal and Policy Issues.” (Portland, ME.: National Academy of State Health Policy, March 2001).

Zwillich T. , “Senate Panel Approves Medical Error Bill,” Reuters Health (July 23, 2003), at <http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2003/07/23/eline/links/200>.

Nordenberg , supra note 19, at 7.

Medical Malpractice Referral Network, supra note 8, at 2.

<Http://www.leapfroggroup.org/consumer_intro2.htm> (last visited April 5, 2004). See also Association of American Medical Colleges, Joint Committee of the Group On Resident Affairs and Organization of Resident Representatives, “Patient Safety and Graduate Medical Education” (Washington, D.C.: Association of American Medical Colleges, November 2002): 6.

Medical Malpractice Referral Network, supra note 8, at 4.

Tokarski C. , “Computerized Order Entry Lowers Medication Errors in Children,” Pediatrics 112, no. 3, (2003): 506–509.

Piasecki M. , “Electronic Devices May Be a Cure for Rx Errors,” Austin Business Journal (April 17, 2000), at <http://austin.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2000/04/17/focus4.html>.

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“Medical Mistakes,” Spiritual One (June 19, 2002) at <http://www.divinecipher.com/spiritualone/archives/00000215.html>.

Blendon R. DesRoches C. Brodie M. , “Views of Practicing Physicians and the Public on Medical Errors,” N. Engl. J. Med. 347, no. 24 (2002): 1933–1940.

Medical Malpractice Referral Network, supra note 8, at 2.

Association of American Medical Colleges, supra note 30, at 10.

Medical Malpractice Referral Network, supra note 8, at 6.

Migdail , supra note 5, at 2.

There were 150 documented interventions recommended during the rounding process, 147 of which were accepted by the team. The most common interventions were (1) dosing-related changes and (2) recommendations to add a drug to therapy. See Kucukarslan S. Peters M. Mlynarek M. , “Pharmacists on Rounding Teams Reduce Preventable Adverse Drug Events in Hospital General Medicine Units,” Archives of Internal Medicine 163 (2003): 2014–2018.

Forster , supra note 11, at 166.

Brennan , supra note 24, at 4–5.

Oberg , supra note 25, at 17A.

Kohn supra note 1.

American Medical Association Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs, The Code of Medical Ethics (Chicago, IL.: American Medical Association, 1998): xv.

Thurman A. , “Institutional Responses to Medical Mistakes: Ethical and Legal Perspectives”, Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 2, no. 2 (2001): 147–156.

Id. at 151.

Leape , supra note 26, at 1635.

Id. at 152. Marshall Kapp provides an excellent survey of the available literature and studies, including the opposing arguments. See Kapp M. , “Medical Errors vs. Malpractice,” DePaul Journal of Health Care Law 1 (1997): 751–772; see also Kraman S.S. Hamm G. , “Risk Management: Extreme Honesty May Be the Best Policy.” Annals of Internal Medicine 131 (1999): 963–967.

DeVita M.A. , “Honestly, Do We Need a Policy on Truth?” Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 2, no. 2 (2001): 157–164.

Purtilo R.B. , “Conduct, Virtue, and Context in the Professional-Patient Relationship,” in Reich W. , ed., Encyclopedia of Bioethics, Rev. ed. (New York: Simon & Schuster and Prentice Hall: 1995): 2096.

Migdail , supra note 5, at 1.

Brennan , supra note 24, at 4.

Oberg , supra note 25, at 17A.

Nordenberg , supra note 19, at 6.

H.B. 0363, § 456.42, 2003 Leg. (Fla. 2003) (“An Act Relating to Drug Prescriptions”).