July 12, 2017/in Medical Malpractice /by Mark Kaire

It is estimated that nearly 100,000 people die each year because of mistakes that their hospital makes while they are a patient or in its care. It is also believed that most people will experience at least one delayed medical diagnosis or misdiagnosis during the course of their lifetime. This amounts to approximately 12 million Americans who will suffer a diagnostic error in a single year. Of the American adults who seek outpatient care, around 5% will be misdiagnosed. It is further believed that misdiagnosis and diagnostic errors make up about 10% of patient deaths and 17% of patient adverse advents in hospital settings.

It is also worth noting that misdiagnosis is the most common type of medical malpractice claim paid and they are almost twice as likely to have caused the death of a patient as opposed to other types of malpractice claims. In the US, misdiagnosis is the third leading cause of death.

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