New system could reduce medical negligence across the country

In Chicago, Illinois, residents have heard news before of patients who were wronged by doctors. Failure to diagnose a disease could lead to inappropriate treatment, which could cause serious injuries and fatalities to patients. Chicago medical malpractice often leads to the endangerment of patients’ lives. For example, there are cases when patients suffer from surgical errors like having an operation on the wrong organ or some surgical tools left inside their body.

Surgeons and medical staffs may commit surgical errors when they fail to follow the proper standards of care while conducting an operation. The smallest detail during the operation should be treated as equally important. One wrong move of surgeons and medical staffs could lead to mishaps which could debilitate the patient’s body. The role of medical professionals is to provide the best possible healthcare they can offer to their patients.

If negligence occurs, medical professionals like doctors, health organizations and laboratories may be held responsible for the compensation of the victims of medical malpractice.

With regard to medical negligence that happens across the country, the United States Critical Illness and Injury Trials Group, Philips Research North America and the Mayo Clinic will now collaborate for one goal-to reduce hospital mishaps in intensive care units. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) awarded the institutions with an amount of $16 million for the creation of a cloud-based medical decision support system. It aims to help in improving critical care inside ICUs.

Healthcare professionals are having a hard time with information overload, which mainly causes 27 percent of Medicare beneficiaries to receive improper healthcare treatment. These preventable errors can cause harrowing experiences for patients. The new system simply creates a link between the application and a healthcare professional. Through the cloud-based application, patient data is sent and then interpreted. The system alerts the medical staff in case of problems.

Constant innovations may reduce the incidents of medical negligence; still, there’s a chance that accidents may continue to occur. Patients who feel that they were wronged by their doctors may file a personal injury claim. A thorough investigation may take place in order to prove the negligence. This may cause the entitlement of awards to the victims.

Source: Healthtechzone.com, “Researchers Awarded $16M to Reduce Errors in ICUs,” David Delony, Dec. 19, 2012