A medical error is a preventable adverse effect of care, whether or not it is evident or harmful to the patient. This might include an inaccurate or incomplete diagnosis or treatment of a disease, injury, syndrome, behavior, infection, or other illnesses. Globally, it is estimated that 142,000 people died in 2013 from adverse effects of medical treatment up from 94,000 in
1990.
A medical error occurs when a healthcare provider chooses an inappropriate method of care or improperly executes an appropriate method of care. Medical errors are often described as human errors in healthcare. However, medical error definitions are subject to debate, as there are many types of medical error from minor to major, and causality is often poorly determined. There are many taxonomies for classifying medical errors. Globally it is estimated that
142,000 people died in 2013 from adverse effects of medical treatment up from 94,000 in
1990. In the UK, a 2000 study found that an estimated 850,000 medical errors occur each year, costing over £2 billion. Some researchers questioned the accuracy of the IOM study, criticizing the statistical handling of measurement errors in the report, significant subjectivity in determining which deaths were "avoidable" or due to medical error, and an erroneous assumption that 100% of patients would have survived if optimal care had been provided. A 2006 followup to the IOM study found that medication errors are among the most common medical mistakes, harming at least 1.5 million people every year. According to the
study, 400,000 preventable drugrelated injuries occur each year in hospitals, 800,000 in longterm care settings, and roughly 530,000 among Medicare recipients in outpatient clinics.
The report stated that these are likely to be conservative estimates. In 2000 alone, the extra medical costs incurred by preventable drug related injuries approximated $887 million and the study looked
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