You suspect that you may be a victim of a medical error. Perhaps you believe that your condition was misdiagnosed or diagnosed too late, or you’ve had complications following surgery, or serious issues related to medication. How do you learn if your treatment was negligent and is an actual case of medical malpractice?
Did you experience a medical error? What is a “medical error?”
The American Medical Association defines an error in the context of health care as “an unintended act or omission or a flawed system or plan that harms or has the potential to harm a patient.” The National Institutes of Health (NCBI) defines medical error as “the failure of a planned action to be completed as intended (an error of execution) or the use of a wrong plan to achieve an aim (an error of planning.)