Pennsylvania Convenes Expert Panel to Combat Diagnostic Error

HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov. 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Everyone will experience a delayed or incorrect diagnosis at least once in their lifetime. The causes of which are as varied and complex as their solutions.

The Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority (Authority) convened a panel of some of the nation's top experts in the field to discuss how to improve the diagnostic process.

Featured on the panel were Dr. Mark Graber and Paul Epner, co-founders of the Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine (SIDM), Dr. Michael Consuelos, Dr. Christine Goeschel, Helen Haskell, Dr. Joyce Knestrick, Dr. Timothy Mosher, Sue Sheridan, Dana Siegal, and Dr. Hardeep Singh.

The panel discussed a broad range of topics, including whether the current payment system is structured in a manner that prevents diagnostic error, what influence the fear of malpractice cases has over providers, and how much responsibility is appropriate for patients to assume.

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"Whether you are a physician, nurse, allied health provider, or healthcare leader, my plea to you is to choose improving diagnosis as one of your top priorities," said Regina Hoffman, executive director of the Authority. "Diagnostic error affects millions of Americans every year. Lives are lost or forever changed because of this complex problem."

Rebecca Jones, director of the Authority's Center of Excellence for Improving Diagnosis added, "Similar to where we were twenty years ago, before patient safety was on everyone's radar, these are the conversations that needed to be had."

"The articles in this issue offer a glimpse into the depth, breadth, and complexity of the diagnostic process. It is our hope that this publication will increase awareness and inspire action to decrease harm and death from diagnostic error."

Also published in this Advisory:

• Identifying and Learning from Events Involving Diagnostic Error: It's a Process: 
  Failures in the diagnostic process can occur at several junctures, (e.g., patients withholding an important part of their medical history, a provider inaccurately interpreting a radiologic image, a laboratory test producing a false positive). This article reviews events reported to the Authority and provides a classification system.
• Misdiagnosis Can Cause Guilt for Those Seeking Resolution: From the Bedside to the Courtroom, the Perspective of a Clinician Turned Malpractice Attorney:
  A malpractice attorney who began her career as a nurse then nurse practitioner shares her perspective having experienced both sides of this issue—how a provider may be unaware they have committed a diagnostic error until they are being sued to what it feels like to be a patient who was harmed by one.
• The Star of the Diagnostic Journey: Assessing Patient Perspectives:
  Based on the results of a survey conducted earlier this year, this article takes an in-depth look at patient perspectives into the diagnostic process. Do patients prefer to receive their diagnosis in-person or via a mobile app? Does that change depending on your age? Do patients follow up on their test results or just assume no news is good news? 

For more information about the Authority, patient safety topics, Advisory articles, and safety tips for patients, please visit patientsafety.pa.gov.

The Authority's mission is to improve the quality of healthcare in Pennsylvania by collecting and analyzing patient safety information, developing solutions to patient safety issues, and sharing this information through education and collaboration. Its vision is safe healthcare for all patients.

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SOURCE Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority