Chasing Zero Essay -- Health, Preventable Medical Error

Chasing Zero is a documentary which was meant to both improve the viewer on the prevalence of medical ravish as rise as to enlighten both the public and health care providers on the preventability of these events (Disc everywherey, 2010). The documentary expounded on the fact each year more passel die each year from a preventable medical misapprehension than die due to breast cancer, motor vehicle accidents or acquired immune deficiency syndrome (Institute of Medicine, 1999). medical harm can result from adverse drug events, surgical injuries, wrong-site surgery, suicides, restraint-related injuries, falls, burns, pressure ulcers and mistaken patient identities (Institute of Medicine, 1999). Incidences of medical computer error have been enshroud in the media for many years. The most startling revelation in the documentary is how common medical errors are and how preventable they are. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) describe in 1999 that between 44,000 and 98,000 people die each year in the United States due to a preventable medical error. A report written by the National Quality Forum (NQF) found that over a decade after the IOM report the prevalence of medical errors remain very high (2010). In fact a study make by the Hearst Corporation found that the mo of deaths due to medical error and post surgical infections has increased since the IOM starting time highlighted the problem and recommended actions to reduce the number of events (Dyess, 2009). The premise of Chasing Zero is to reduce the number of deaths due to healthcare harm to zero. Leading authorities on healthcare quality, such as Charles Denham, accept that all of these deaths are preventable and can be eliminated (Discovery, 2010). Dr. Denham along with the Texas Medical Institute of Technology (TMIT) are dedicat... ...vers, clinical and non-clinical leaders of hospitals and international pass on matter experts.The Texas Medical Institute of Technology, through programs su ch as Chasing Zero, is delivery a public voice to the issue of healthcare harm. The documentary is a stirring example of the quality issues facing the healthcare system. In 2003, the NQF first introduced the 30 Safe Practices for Better Healthcare, which it hoped all hospitals would adopt (National Quality Forum, 2010). straight off the list has grown to 34, yet the number of preventable healthcare harm events continues to rise. The lack of standardization and mandates which require the reporting of events contributes to the absence of meaningful improvement. possibly through initiatives such as those developed by TMIT and the vivid and arrest patient stories such as Chasing Zero, change will soon be at hand.