How Safe Is Your Hospital? What You Should Know.

Diagnostic errors. Hospital-acquired infections. Wrong-site surgery. Three adverse complications that happen all too frequently according to an article in Everyday Health titled How Safe Is Your Hospital?

The article outlines the following steps to avoid being the victim of a medical mistake.

• First, use the patient checklist provided in our previous post. Also, when faced with surgery or a major medical treatment for a diagnosed illness, consider a DNA test in conjunction with a diagnostic biopsy to make sure there is no mix up in the lab.
• Ask about the hospital’s infection-control protocols and make sure that medical staff that come in contact with you are following them.
• If you’ve been prescribed antibiotics, ask if they put you at increased risk of infection while in the hospital
• When preparing for surgery, makes sure the correct body part or surgery site is marked.
• And lastly, don’t hesitate to ask any question.

The video below describes how over-prescribing of antibiotics can put patients at risk of infection.

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