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So tonight I was briefly flipping channels and stumbled on this as it was about to start so I stopped and watched and, wow! The doctor interviewed is not an obscure one, his name is Martin A. Makary of the famous Johns Hopkins hospital, and in his new book "Unaccountable" he tells how 1 person in 3 will experience a preventable medical mistake. To anyone who might want to minimize this, try to wrap your head around what was discussed in the show: Medical mistakes are 1) the 5th major cause of death in the U.S., 2) It's equal to FOUR jumbo jets crashing and everyone dying every single week.
Dr. Makary unabashedly confessed that he himself made so many mistakes when he was an intern that his colleagues had a special nickname for him (Dr. "HODAD"), I unfortunately didn't write down what it stood for but it was pretty bad, but if you got to ABC-20/20 in a few days it'll probably be available and you can hear it for yourself. When asked why he did this since it would seemingly cause negative response from the public he said something like there's a growing group in favor of more transparency regarding medical care with the intention of improving it. And I agree, unless these things come out into public view and there's sufficient outrage not enough effort to lower those numbers would be made.
He explained why people have to wait so long at the E.R., and it's all about money, which made me totally sick since no one can say it's cheap... When pressed he said where the money is is in surgery, and very many of them are not really necessary (nothing new there though...).
I'm glad that I was "lucky" the few times I was hospitalized for childbirth (cesarean though) and to repair a badly broken arm. But too many people undergo unnecessary surgeries, which is something Dr. Makary spoke about. In this page (where you can hear an interview with Dr. Makay), there's a short excerpt from his book found at Scribd.com which tells of how he actually quit his studies during his 3rd year when a elderly lady he cared a lot about died 3 months after a surgery she didn't really need but which her doctors pushed. Obviously, later on he went back and finished medical school and I'm glad he's using his position to try to make a difference.
The moral of this is: don't accept any recommendation for surgery lightly, first do at least some basic research to see if it's the only possible treatment for your condition. Second, if you're not sure, seek a 2nd opinion. Third, if you go for it try to find out what is the hospital's history of iatrogenic deaths, lawsuits, etc., and the rate of success of the surgeon. The best way to prevent problems today is to be well-informed and to have good communication with the surgeon in whose hands you are very possibly going to put your life in.
My current doc is often sent 2nd opinions for back surgery, and he's loud and doesn't close patient doors, so I've heard a few amusing exchanges where the patient argues that they need surgery while he explains why he feels a more conservative approach is better. Spinal fusions rarely end up with a happy result and there are newer techniques such as micro surgery that are safer.
Another big issue is local doctors always agree with one another, so it's best to have them done as far apart as possible.
According to the CDC, "medical mistakes" doesn't even show up on the top 10 list of cause of death. The 5th most common cause of death is "accidents." Perhaps the good doctor lumped "medical mistakes" in with "accidents" and twisted it around to mean that "All Accidents = Medical Mistakes." I can see where that would be convenient, when pushing your agenda. However, it's more likely that it was taken out of context, or perhaps a single word was missing...and it was more like "Medical mistakes fall within the category of accidents - and accidents are the 5th leading cause of death."
The reason people wait so long in ER, is because most of the people waiting there, aren't experiencing an actual emergency. People who experience actual emergencies go first. Everyone else waits. If you are brought in by ambulance because you have a bullet lodged in a lung and half your face is blasted off from another bullet - you get preferential treatment over someone who's coughing up mucus mingled with bits of blood, but is otherwise able to walk himself into the building. That's just how it is. When you're the one with a collapsed lung and your cheek muscle dripping into your mouth, you'll be glad they have that particular policy.
Meaning like the one we had flown out on a helicopter last night? The one with serious injuries? Yup, priority over the other non emergency visits to the ER. The abuse of EMS and emergency rooms is the biggest issue.
My current doc is often sent 2nd opinions for back surgery, and he's loud and doesn't close patient doors, so I've heard a few amusing exchanges where the patient argues that they need surgery while he explains why he feels a more conservative approach is better. Spinal fusions rarely end up with a happy result and there are newer techniques such as micro surgery that are safer.
Another big issue is local doctors always agree with one another, so it's best to have them done as far apart as possible.
1. Spinal fusions "rarely" end up with a happy result.....nonsense
2. Microsurgery and spinal fusions....apples and oranges....the patient that needs a spinal fusion won't be helped by microsurgery and vice versa.
1. Spinal fusions "rarely" end up with a happy result.....nonsense
2. Microsurgery and spinal fusions....apples and oranges....the patient that needs a spinal fusion won't be helped by microsurgery and vice versa.
Spinal fusions used to be incredibly risky, and really did have a pretty lousy recovery rate, at one time in medical history. Technology has advanced and improved and the techniques and materials used now "are not the same as your father's Oldsmobile," so to speak.
Spinal microsurgery is comparatively new. It's not new as in "just approved this year" new - but it's new, compared to spinal fusions and the advent of spinal surgery.
According to the CDC, "medical mistakes" doesn't even show up on the top 10 list of cause of death. The 5th most common cause of death is "accidents." Perhaps the good doctor lumped "medical mistakes" in with "accidents" and twisted it around to mean that "All Accidents = Medical Mistakes." I can see where that would be convenient, when pushing your agenda. However, it's more likely that it was taken out of context, or perhaps a single word was missing...and it was more like "Medical mistakes fall within the category of accidents - and accidents are the 5th leading cause of death."
The reason people wait so long in ER, is because most of the people waiting there, aren't experiencing an actual emergency. People who experience actual emergencies go first. Everyone else waits. If you are brought in by ambulance because you have a bullet lodged in a lung and half your face is blasted off from another bullet - you get preferential treatment over someone who's coughing up mucus mingled with bits of blood, but is otherwise able to walk himself into the building. That's just how it is. When you're the one with a collapsed lung and your cheek muscle dripping into your mouth, you'll be glad they have that particular policy.
I waited with a collapsed lung for over 3 hours because my oxygen level was in the 90s when they checked it when I arrived. When I got back into the treatment area of the ER, and they finally did the CAT scan hours later it was a different story. I was hospitalized for a week. Turns out the doctor who had taken my gallbladder out 3 days prior broke my ribs during the surgery. So let's see can't breathe, horrible pain in my side and 3 days out from surgery, and the runny nose kids went ahead of me. Oh and they had to wheel me in in a wheel chair because I was too out of breath to walk. I think medical mistakes are much more common than reported.
Good, a doctor with courage, kudos to Dr. Makary. I have mentioned in other health posts an extensive investigation by
Steven Brill in Time Magazine's March 4, 2013 issue "The Bitter Pill. Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us." When I first started reading it, I had to put it down because it was very upsetting. I can say this with complete honesty that there were
respected doctors who treated me and due to their incompetency they helped ruin the quality of my life.
Of course everyone should get a second opinion and research the hospital, physicians and surgeons but that is not as easy
as it sounds. When it becomes something serious I know one excellent surgeon I had who will give me an honest answer
however I live several hours away.
How can anyone sort their way through a hospital's data if you can't figure out your hospital bill. Are they going to give
you accurate mortality rates? To find the best rate of success about a surgeon would be referrals by previous
patients...is this even possible?
I am very well informed and I will also say this....there have been some doctors (not all) who get offended if you ask
questions - communication on their terms only.
1. Spinal fusions "rarely" end up with a happy result.....nonsense
2. Microsurgery and spinal fusions....apples and oranges....the patient that needs a spinal fusion won't be helped by microsurgery and vice versa.
Ok, well......I'm one of the lucky ones, I guess.....I had a spinal fusion L4-5, about 4 years ago, it was perfect! It completely erased my pain. Prior to the surgery, I couldn't sit through a movie, couldn't sit to drive, constantly felt like there was a knife in my back.
I would have been happy if it just eased the pain, even somewhat. Let alone completely erased the pain! But then, I did have a world-class surgeon in a world-class hospital.....that can make a difference!
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