Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36976599›Full record

ArticleThe western journal of emergency medicine2023

Medical Malpractice and Diagnostic Errors in Japanese Emergency Departments.

Taiju Miyagami, Takashi Watari, Taku Harada, Toshio Naito

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Article in The western journal of emergency medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

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3citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Taiju MiyagamiJuntendo University, Department of General Medicine, Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan.
Takashi WatariShimane University Hospital, General Medicine Center, Department of General Medicine, Izumo City, Shimane, Japan.
Taku HaradaNerima Hikarigaoka Hospital, Division of General Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Toshio NaitoJuntendo University, Department of General Medicine, Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionEmergency departments (ED) are unpredictable and prone to diagnostic errors. In addition, non-emergency specialists often provide emergency care in Japan due to a lack of certified emergency specialists, making diagnostic errors and associated medical malpractice more likely. While several studies have investigated the medical malpractice related to diagnostic errors in EDs, only a few have focused on the conditions in Japan. This study examines diagnostic error-related medical malpractice lawsuits in Japanese EDs to understand how various factors contribute to diagnostic errors.

methodsWe retrospectively examined data on medical lawsuits from 1961-2017 to identify types of diagnostic errors and initial and final diagnoses from non-trauma and trauma cases.

resultsWe evaluated 108 cases, of which 74 (68.5%) were diagnostic error cases. Twenty-eight of the diagnostic errors were trauma-related (37.8%). In 86.5% of these diagnostic error cases, the relevant errors were categorized as either missed or diagnosed incorrectly; the others were attributable to diagnostic delay. Cognitive factors (including faulty perception, cognitive biases, and failed heuristics) were associated with 91.7% of errors. Intracranial hemorrhage was the most common final diagnosis of trauma-related errors (42.9%), and the most common initial diagnoses of non-trauma-related errors were upper respiratory tract infection (21.7%), non-bleeding digestive tract disease (15.2%), and primary headache (10.9%).

conclusionIn this study, the first to examine medical malpractice errors in Japanese EDs, we found that such claims are often developed from initial diagnoses of common diseases, such as upper respiratory tract infection, non-hemorrhagic gastrointestinal diseases, and headaches.

Indexed as

MalpracticeRespiratory Tract InfectionsDelayed DiagnosisDiagnostic ErrorsEmergency Service, HospitalHeadacheHumansJapanMedical ErrorsRetrospective Studies

Identifiers

PMID36976599
PMCPMC10047720

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