Since a 1999 report by the Institute of Medicine found that fatal medical errors affect nearly 98,000 people each year, a number of organizations have dedicated their efforts to promoting and understanding hospital patient safety in Oregon and across the country. One...
Dedicated To Protecting What Matters Most
Year: 2012
Medical malpractice reform ideas inch ahead in Oregon
The healthcare industry in Oregon and the rest of the country is generally acknowledged to be in a major state of disarray. That's part of the inspiration behind such reform measures as the federal Affordable Care Act. Among the issues that gets a lot of rhetorical...
Drugs for hypertension may be dangerous during pregnancy
Readers in Oregon likely know that proper prenatal care can be essential to the future health of an unborn baby. A major component of that care is a doctor's ability to properly diagnose and/or treat problems that may arise during a pregnancy. Yet a new study...
Oregon seniors might be at higher risk for prescription errors
A patient relies on his or her doctor to prescribe drugs that are appropriate. Any breach of that trust might constitute negligence on the part of a health care professional. Yet around 20 percent of prescriptions that primary care providers give to senior patients --...
Overexposure from CT scans may put Oregon patients at risk
We recently discussed potential medical risks -- such as infection, allergic reaction or additional complications -- that can result when patients are subjected to unnecessary testing. Today's posting explores the risks surrounding doctors' increasing use of computed...
Jury finds hospital liable for birth injury
Injuries caused by the negligence of hospital staff during the delivery process may sometimes be so severe that they foreclose any possibility of a child having a normal life. For that reason, many Oregon readers regard birth injuries as among the most tragic of...
Doctor burnout may be putting Oregon patients at risk
Despite remarkable improvements in medical technology, patients in Oregon and nationwide continue to be injured by medical negligence, such as surgical errors. A new survey suggests that doctor burnout may be a prime culprit. The survey was led by researchers from the...
New test may help rapidly diagnose heart attack patients
An estimated 10% of all visits to emergency departments in Oregon and nationwide may involve patients whose symptoms suggest acute myocardial infarction, commonly referred to as heart attack. However, that diagnosis often requires several hours of observation, and may...
Unnecessary medical testing may have put patients at risk
An internal investigation prompted by a letter from a former nurse at HCA -- the largest for-profit hospital chain in the United States with 163 facilities -- revealed that unnecessary testing may have been the norm in the hospital's cardiology department. The finding...
Medical technician’s arrest reveals need for national database
Medical technicians in Oregon and nationwide aren't as closely regulated as doctors or nurses. Whereas a national database exists for tracking misconduct or disciplinary actions against physicians, many states don't maintain a comparable database for technicians or...