JAMA -- Learning Accountability for Patient Outcomes, July 14, 2010, Pronovost 304 (2): 204

Commentary

Learning Accountability for Patient Outcomes Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD JAMA. 2010;304(2):204-205. doi:10.1001/jama.2010.979 Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings. Each year, an estimated 100 000 patients die of health care–associated infections, another 44 000 to 98 000 die of other preventable errors, and tens of thousands more die of diagnostic errors or failure to receive recommended therapies.1-3 Physicians are overconfident about the quality of care they provide, believing things will go right rather than wrong, assuming they provide higher-quality care than the evidence suggests, and thinking they alone have sufficient knowledge and skills to provide care. Teamwork failures are common contributors to harmful errors. In many cases, someone knew something was wrong and either did not speak up or spoke up and was ignored. It is unclear how many teamwork and communication failures result from arrogance. Most clinicians have personal stories of arrogance causing patient harm. My own involved a patient who had classic signs of a latex allergy, but for whom the operating surgeon refused to . . . [Full Text of this Article] Author Affiliations: Departments of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine and Surgery, School of Medicine, and Department of Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health, and School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.