What counts as “medical malpractice” or “medical error”?

“Medical malpractice” encompasses a wide array of acts or failures to act. At its core, however, medical malpractice refers to professional negligence by a healthcare provider whose treatment fell below the accepted standard of care and thus caused harm, injury, or death to a patient.

Intensive care units, operating rooms, and emergency departments all have high error rates with serious adverse effects, but preventable medical errors can happen in any specialty during even all manner of procedures. Here are some of the most commonly cited areas for medical malpractice:

Diagnosis

• Missed diagnosis or failure to properly diagnose (e.g. stroke or heart attack)
• Misreading of X-ray, MRI, ultrasound, or other diagnostic test
• Failure to make request for specialist consultation, referral, or transfer

Surgery

• Improper surgical techniques
• Operating on the wrong body part or wrong site
• Anesthesia mistakes
• Leaving foreign object in the body
• Improper post-op procedures

Hospitalization and Care Facilities

• Restraint-related injuries
• Falls from improper bed rails or restraints
• Burns
• Pressure ulcers or bed sores
• Mistaken patient identities

Testing

• Failure to order the proper tests
• Defective medical devices
• Unnecessary testing or treatment
• Tests you did not consent to

Medication

• Adverse drug events
• Dangerous drugs
• Prescribing wrong medications or conflicting medications