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What Are the Causes of Medical Malpractice?

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Did you know that medical mistakes are the third-highest cause of preventable deaths?

Physicians are responsible for the wellbeing of their patients and this involves giving them the best care possible. Unfortunately, the nature of healthcare makes the possibility of serious errors quite high.

Doctors are often overworked, which impacts their judgment and ability to function. In a constant high-pressure environment, it’s a lot for any person to manage and this results in mistakes.

While errors are understandable, negligent mistakes that cause serious injury or death are known as medical malpractice. When medical malpractice occurs, this opens up a physician to legal action should the victim or their family choose to sue.

Understanding medical malpractice begins with figuring out what causes it. We’ll look into this below to give you some insight into the problem.

Distraction

The first way a serious error can happen is through distraction

Similar to how distraction can cause a car accident, doctors must always be focused on the patient at hand to give them the best treatment possible. Failing to do so means that they don’t have a full grasp of the situation.

In a doctor’s office, many things can result in distraction. Whether it’s a nurse popping in for an update, receiving a page, or something going on in their head, it’s easy to lose focus.

Despite this, physicians must do their best to give you their undivided attention. Much of what they have to work with is what you tell them, but also what you show them.

If a doctor is not carefully watching you, then they may lack the information needed for a proper diagnosis. Distractions make this likely, meaning that some medical malpractice cases can be linked to it.

Exhaustion

One of the leading causes of medical malpractice is exhaustion and general fatigue.

Because doctors are so overworked, they often end up pulling long shifts and this will physically tire any human being. It also affects their mental capacity, which leads to poor decision making.

Being fatigued is incredibly dangerous because it can be compared to being intoxicated. This level of mental and physical impairment is hazardous, especially when it’s affecting someone in charge of making medical decisions.

The problem here is that almost any doctor you find is likely fatigued. The number of skilled medical professionals pales in comparison to the total population and those that need assistance.

Considering this, errors caused by exhaustion are natural. That said, they are still considered medical malpractice. Doctors must manage their fatigue levels and avoid working if they cannot think straight, but it often isn’t simple to do. 

Poor Mental State

A poor mental state can also lead to medical mistakes.

Exhaustion is one good example of an affected mental state. A tired doctor is likely to be grumpy, impatient, and disinterested, as is anyone who wants nothing more than to go to sleep.

Many more aspects of a doctor’s daily routine can also impact their mood and mindset. They may have personal distractions or be affected by an interaction with another patient. Being a physician is highly taxing and will surely take a toll on anyone.

This creates problems because a poor mental state affects a doctor’s ability to diagnose their patients. If they aren’t thinking clearly, they may not pursue something that should be looked into.

Alternatively, a physician may fail to listen to the patient. This can cause them to make assumptions and prescribe treatment that causes complications.

While having an affected mental state as a physician is understandable, it cannot impact how they treat their patients. When it does, it will be considered medical malpractice.

Lack of Experience

Medical malpractice can also originate from a lack of experience.

Becoming a doctor is a lengthy process entailing several years of education and hands-on experience. It is a long journey for anyone to take and many people do not finish.

Those that do become the physicians that treat you. Despite going through this process, there is simply so much information for a doctor to learn. There are thousands of different conditions and symptoms to be aware of.

It is inconceivable for any doctor to know everything. Especially if a physician is fairly new, like a resident, they won’t have enough experience to properly handle every situation.

Unfortunately, this lack of experience means that every doctor will make mistakes throughout their career as a result of their ignorance.

While a lack of knowledge is a bitter pill to swallow, a physician has the responsibility to learn as much as they can about their patient and their condition. They should consult with peers and other resources to find an appropriate treatment plan.

If an injury or death is caused by a lack of experience, it will be deemed as medical malpractice.

Inadequate Regulation

Lastly, inadequate regulations and oversight can also easily cause physicians to make mistakes.

Because many physicians are often overworked, this usually means that hospitals are understaffed. With this in mind, understaffed facilities cannot possibly have adequate oversight.

If every doctor is focused on their patients, who is overseeing them? While doctors do not need to be micromanaged, it helps to have regulations in place that prevent avoidable errors.

For example, an exhausted doctor may forget an important step in a routine procedure. If a policy was in place that each standard procedure had checklists that must be precisely followed, then a skipped step would never occur.

Many hospitals lack the resources to provide the necessary organization and regulation to ensure smooth operations. This trickles down to physicians and impairs their ability to effectively treat their patients and avoid mistakes.

While the structure of hospitals should be improved to prevent them, avoidable mistakes are medical malpractice.

Closing Thoughts

Doctors and medical professionals are some of the most important workers in the world. They keep us healthy and provide treatment when ailments and injuries occur.

These physicians are obligated to give their best effort to keep you safe. If they do not act in alignment with this, then their behavior can be determined as medical malpractice.

A few causes for medical malpractice include distraction, exhaustion, poor mental states, a lack of experience, and inadequate regulations and oversight.

Medical malpractice is shockingly easy considering the factors affecting a physician each day. With this in mind, understand that your physician is human and consider getting a second opinion for anything that doesn’t seem right.

Michelle has been a part of the journey ever since Bigtime Daily started. As a strong learner and passionate writer, she contributes her editing skills for the news agency. She also jots down intellectual pieces from categories such as science and health.

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Health

Back Pain Prevention in Construction: 10 Tips for Success

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If you work in the construction industry or a related field, you’re especially vulnerable to back pain and complicated lower back issues. The good news is, most back injuries and pain are preventable with the right habits and strategies.

What are the most important steps to take?

Why Back Injuries Are So Important to Prevent

First, let’s address why back injuries are so important to prevent. Back injuries are among the most common injuries on construction job-sites, and they can be devastating to a person’s physical health and sense of wellbeing. After a single back injury, a person can struggle with back pain for the rest of their lives – and interfere with their ability to work in the future.

Because of this, and because back injuries can also be difficult to treat, back injuries are disproportionately expensive for construction companies and insurance companies.

Also, most back injuries can be prevented with simple policies and procedures – so there are few, if any costs associated with back injury and back pain prevention.

Tips for Back Pain Prevention

If you’re an employee in the construction industry, you should follow these tips for back pain prevention. If you’re an employer in the construction industry, you should ensure that all of your employees follow these tips.

  1. Avoid lifting whenever possible. Back injuries are most commonly attributable to lifting something that’s too heavy, or lifting something the wrong way. Accordingly, you can prevent many back injuries by avoiding the lifting action altogether. Is there an alternative way you can move heavy items? Is there a way to avoid this work entirely?
  2. Store materials at a convenient height. If and when you do need to move things, store those materials at a convenient, accessible height. Ideally, these items will be available at or above waist height, making it easier and more intuitive for employees to lift these items properly.
  3. Lift with your legs. Lift with your legs” is a common instruction, and an essential one to follow. But what does that really mean? Basically, it means bending your legs and using your legs as a main source of force when attempting to pick something up; the alternative, bending over and rounding your back, can set you up for a herniated disc or a similar injury.
  4. Avoid twisting your spine. Similarly, you should avoid twisting your spine when lifting or carrying something, as this can render you prone to injury as well. Also, when carrying something, keep it close to the center of your body.
  5. Utilize extra equipment. Carts, dollies, forklifts, and hoists are just a few of the tools and resources that can assist you in lifting and moving things. Utilize these pieces of equipment whenever you have the opportunity.
  6. Use proper posture when sitting or standing. Even if you’re not exerting yourself, sitting or standing with poor posture can increase your risk of a back injury. Keep your spine straight and your shoulders back at all times.
  7. Use major muscle groups to lift. When lifting things, try to engage your biggest muscle groups, rather than relying on areas of your body with limited to no muscle mass. For example, the latissimus dorsi (lat) muscles in your upper back that help you extend and rotate your arms are typically bigger, stronger, and more resilient than the smaller, thinner muscles in your lower back.
  8. Get help. Instead of lifting something heavy by yourself, consider getting help. There’s no shame in team lifting something if it means both people are less likely to suffer a back injury.
  9. Take breaks (and rotate crew members). Don’t lift more frequently than necessary. If you’ve been lifting and carrying things to the point of being fatigued, take a break and consider rotating out with another team member. Share responsibilities associated with back injuries with the rest of the team.
  10. Rest and recover when necessary. If you do experience a back injury or suffer from any back pain, take the time to rest and recover. If you push yourself too far when you’re already injured, you could end up making your injury much worse. Get the medical help you need and refrain from engaging in heavy lifting responsibilities until you’re 100 percent better.

Bonus Tip: Hold Others Accountable

Here’s one more important tip for you: hold other people accountable to following these standards. There’s much you can do to prevent injuries in your own approach to work, but part of maintaining a safe job-site is helping other people stay safe as well. Don’t be afraid to call someone out and educate them when you notice them lifting something incorrectly.

Simple, inexpensive, proactive efforts are usually more than enough to prevent back injuries. Don’t let lax standards at your construction job-site harm your best workers.

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