Communication Failures Linked to 1,744 Deaths in Five Years, US Malpractice Study Finds

Hospitals and doctors’ offices nationwide might have avoided nearly 2,000 patient deaths — and $1.7 billion in malpractice costs — if medical staff and patients communicated better, a report released Monday has found.

Communication failures were a factor in 30 percent of the malpractice cases examined by CRICO Strategies, a research and analysis offshoot of the company that insures Harvard-affiliated hospitals. The cases — including 1,744 deaths — involve some horror stories that no family, and no medical professional, wants to experience.

Citation for the full-text article:

Bailey M. (2016 February 1).Communication failures linked to 1,744 deaths in five years, US malpractice study finds. STAT News