In the article “Medical Checklists Waste Time and Money,” Max Rebarb states that time and money are wasted when health professionals follow medical checklists as they are, “... not list-following robots” (2010, p. 1A). Rebarb maintains that health professionals understand how to perform their job and should be free of checklists (Rebarb, 2010, p. 1A). Although Rebarb’s arguments may be valid, many contain false dichotomies; claiming two items are opposite when in fact, are similar; including the comparison of health professionals to bureaucrats, the utilization of a checklist to the knowledge of a health professional and the helpfulness of checklists to a surgeon’s time. The use of a false dichotomy is seen when Rebarb claims, “…checklists…reduce expensively trained medical professionals to bureaucrats who spend time ticking off items…when they could be…seeing more patients.” (2010, p. 1A). Rebarb tries to prove both careers are opposites when in fact, they are related. Health professionals require checklists, like bureaucrats, to complete a proper checkup, for example. These health professionals possess every step needed, on the checklist, in order to prevent lawsuits and make sure the client is healthy. Nevertheless, Rebarb tries to argue not only the opposition between the two careers, but between the career of a health professional and the helpfulness of the checklist. …show more content…
1A). In this false dichotomy, Rebarb fails to recognize that like the rest of us, health professionals are only human. They cannot remember everything and know what to do all of the time. Health professionals understand their job, but these checklists help by giving all information needed while assisting a client. Furthermore, not only is Rebarb misinformed about how checklists can assist in client care, but also surgeons in different
Goldman presents the patient’s ranking value as fixed and decided with no ability to change. In actuality, a patient’s ranking of different values can change depending on the circumstances. It is clear that when a patient goes to visit the doctor, they are ranking their health over other concepts because, at that point in time, their health has become their primary concern and they want to preserve it so they can continue to enjoy their other liberties.
Dr. Gawande emphasizes the value of making mistakes, and how it is a core component of his daily life as a physician. His mistakes are dependent on the “good choices or bad choices” he makes, and regardless of the result that occurs, he learns more about himself as a physician, and more about his connection with patients (215). Critic Joan Smith of The Guardian newspaper mentions that although his various stories about “terrifying” mistakes that doctors make induce fear and a sense of squeamishness within the reader, it is the “emphasis that human beings are not machines” that is “oddly reassuring” (Smith). For example, in the essay, “When Doctors Make Mistakes”, Gawande is standing over his patient Louise Williams, viewing her “lips blue, her throat swollen, bloody, and suddenly closed” (73).
Furthermore, there should be enough trust between the nurses and physicians where they can easily put aside their egos and ask for a second opinion when they have any doubts concerning a patient's safety. This was clearly exemplified when the nursing staff attending to Lewis Blackman failed to contact the physician when various side effects arose; instead they tailored the signs to fit the expected side effects. Even after Blackman’s health was deteriorating, the nurses remained in their “tribes” and never once broke out of it to ask for help. The entire hospital was built on strong culture of remaining in their tribes instead of having goals oriented towards patients care and safety.
Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States, which costs billions of dollars to the economy and increases our health care costs. How can health care managers decrease medical errors to improve costs of health care and costs to the economy? One approach is to have stricter health care polices, as it pertains to providing quality of care to patients no matter if the patient has private insurances, government insurance, self-pay, etc. the quality provided to patients should be the same across the board no matter the income class of patients, high quality of care should be our priority. The second approach would be to have stricter accountability for those that work in the health care field and make them responsible for their health care facilities and have penalties that are sanctioned for preventable medical errors.
Kohn, L. et al. 2000. To err is human: building a safer health system. Washington D.C. National Academies Press.
Each year this panel of experts put a microscope on patient safety across the board. They decide where upmost attention needs to be paid. Sometimes items leave the list because there are been strides take to improve in that area and sometimes it continues to stay on the list because they believe the relevance and importance is growing. Healthcare is evolving b...
Healthcare professionals: Seek the beneficence and nonmaleficence of the patient by giving them truthful and accurate documented services and charging fair legal rates according to standard industry protocols that are reproducible, verifiable, and truthful for the services
Institue of Medicine. To Err Is Human: Building A Safer Health System. Washington D.C.: National Academy of Sciences, 1999. Print.
Diligence is a virtue. This is a theme Atul Gawande presents to the reader throughout Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance. In each story, Gawande provides insight on medical studies he has previously embarked upon. For example, in “The Mop-up” the author tells us about a time when he went to India to observe the efforts to eradicate polio. Gawande explains how he followed a supervisor around and how vaccinations were performed. Additionally, in another chapter he debates on whether physicians should take part in death sentences. Throughout his adventures Gawande provides numerous enriching personal accounts of controversial events and what it is like to be a doctor; each with diligence playing a key part.
Kohn, L., Corrigan, J., & Donaldson, M. (1999). To err is human: building a safer health system. Committee on Quality of Health Care in America Institute of Medicine National Academy Press Washington, D.C.
...re are many options for a patient regarding their health care and it is important that they are knowledgeable in all aspects.
The health care is extremely important to society because without health care it would not be possible for individuals to remain healthy. The health care administers care, treats, and diagnoses millions of individual’s everyday from newborn to fatal illness patients. The health care consists of hospitals, outpatient care, doctors, employees, and nurses. Within the health care there are always changes occurring because of advance technology and without advance technology the health care would not be as successful as it is today. Technology has played a big role in the health care and will continue in the coming years with new methods and procedures of diagnosis and treatment to help safe lives of the American people. However, with plenty of advance technology the health care still manages to make an excessive amount of medical errors. Health care organizations face many issues and these issues have a negative impact on the health care system. There are different ways medical errors can occur within the health care. Medical errors are mistakes that are made by health care providers with no intention of harming patients. These errors rang from communication error, surgical error, manufacture error, diagnostic error, and wrong medication error. There are hundreds of thousands of patients that die every year due to medical error. With medical errors on the rise it has caused the United States to be the third leading cause of death. (Allen.M, 2013) Throughout the United States there are many issues the he...
Medicine as a Form of Social Control This critique will examine the view that medicine is a form of social control. There are many theorists that have different opinions on this view. This critique will discuss each one and their different views. We live in a society where there is a complex division of labour and where enormous varieties of specialist healing roles are recognised.
Surgeons have a lot on their plate when it comes to their work. Surgeons are doctors who are specialized in certain surgeries and operations. While being a surgeon there are many subspecialties that one surgeon could pursue (Field). Surgeons will diagnose and treat patients depending on their condition. They will perform a variety of surgeries on the every single part of the human body (“Surgeon”). It’s important for a surgeon to know everything about a patient’s medical history so they can perform their job to the best of their ability and also decide whether or not the patient needs surgery. They also ...
"Society demands that the men who minister to its health be in the highest sense of the word professional men − professionally trained, professional in their ethics, professionally responsible. Society demands professional training and professional conduct of the men who minister to its needs in legal matters. The fact that society demands less of the men who minister through news to its knowledge and attitudes is one of the great and dangerous inconsistencies that give shape to the twentieth century (Schramm, 1947, p. 90)."