Some Doctors Hesitant to Disclose Medical Errors

Physicians vary in their willingness to disclose medical errors, regardless of the malpractice environment, according to a new study.

Researchers from the University of Washington School of Medicine (Seattle, USA) surveyed 2,637 physicians--with a 62.9% response rate--in the United States and Canada about whether and how they would report serious medical errors to patients.

Physicians' error disclosure attitudes and experiences were similar across country and specialty. Of the physicians surveyed, 64% agreed that errors are a serious problem. However, 50% disagreed that errors are usually caused by system failures. Ninety-eight percent endorsed disclosing serious errors to patients and 78% supported disclosing minor errors. However, 74% thought disclosing a serious error would be very difficult. Only 58% had disclosed a serious error to a patient, of whom 85% were satisfied with the disclosure, and 66% agreed that disclosing a serious error reduces malpractice risk. Respondents' estimates of the probability of lawsuits were not associated with their support for disclosure. The study was published in the August 14/28, 2006, edition of
Archives of Internal Medicine.

"Physicians need to recognize that at present there is a sizable gap between patients' expectations for disclosure and current clinical practice,” said lead author Dr. Thomas H. Gallagher. "The medical profession should direct its gaze inward and consider what dimensions of the culture of medicine are inhibiting transparency.”

Attitudes about the relationship between disclosure and malpractice independently predicted the amount of information disclosed to a patient, the researchers noted. Canadian physicians were no more likely than U.S. physicians to report having disclosed serious errors to patients.



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