Emergency patient in hallway waiting for a bed

“SSE” is a healthcare acronym for serious safety event, which can result in injury or death from the care patients receive.  So, how often are patients exposed to hospital errors?  According to a national study done through the University of Utah, it is about one in three.  By sampling patient records, instead of relying on reportable SSE’s, the Utah researchers concluded the system the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality underestimates medical errors by about 90%. In a separate study, relying on insurance claims, the researchers figured that medical errors causing harm annually costs about $17.1b.  MORE

Image Credit:  Reuters.com