Work

Minimizing the Risk of Diagnostic Errors in Acute Care for Older Adults: An Interdisciplinary Patient Safety Challenge

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Modern healthcare systems are increasingly organized according to diagnosis-specific clinical pathways and treatment protocols. At the same time, the number of patients with complex problems and needs that do not fit the single-diagnosis approach is rising, contributing to a high prevalence of diagnostic errors. In this article, we focus on the risk of diagnostic errors arising from missed or incomplete diagnosis and assessment of older adult patients' care needs in the first hours of acute hospitalizations in EDs. This focus is important for improving patient safety, as clinical decisions made in EDs impact patient safety in the subsequent steps of the process, thereby potentially causing new risks to arise. Based on our discussion of clinical decision-making and diagnostic errors in the acute care context, we propose a more comprehensive interdisciplinary approach to improvements in patient safety that integrates organizational and clinical research and examines where, when, how, and why risks to patient safety arise in and across different clinical-organizational contexts.

Source: Healthcare

DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12181842

Authors: Baker Nawfal Jawad, Kirstine Zink Pedersen, Ove Andersen, Ninna Meier

Institutions: University of Copenhagen, Amager Hospital, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen Business School, Aalborg University

Language: English

Topic: Clinical Reasoning and Diagnostic Skills

Subfield: Family Practice

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,069