Patients in the US are misdiagnosed up 15% of the time in general and up to 55% of the time for certain conditions. How does this happen? In two separate interviews, one in 2010 and another recently, patient safety expert Pat Coskerry explains that it is due mostly to cognitive bias on the part of physicians as well as a lack of critical thinking. Critical, analytic thinking takes more time, energy, and resources and is often abandoned to some degree in favor of "intuitive" thinking, which frequently gets doctors off on the wrong diagnostic path. Additional training in mindfulness of cognitive biases and how to address them is needed to protect patients, according to Coskerry. Read the interviews here.
If you or a loved one was injured by a misdiagnosis or medical malpractice, please call Girards Law Firm at 888-897-2762