25 ways to protect yourself from Medical Errors!
Before getting surgery done, make sure this guy isn't your surgeon!
With all that has happened in the past few months, a few articles I wanted to write about fell off the screen which I am now salvaging and writing about. Part of living a legendary life is having a body that is enables you to do as you wish.
Background Info
RNCentral.com has some really good advice, straight from front-line nurses who have very thoughtful and first hand experience to save you a lot of money by living healthily. Sickness can be avoided with a good lifestyle including plenty of exercise and a great whole food diet but sometimes, hospitals are a necessity, so here are some tips from Heather Johnson that ensure you leave as healthy as possible.
General Advice
1. Care about your Care
Nobody cares as much about your health as you do (or should). If there are some decisions to be made, make sure you are involved in the process.
2. Ask Questions
There is no such thing as a dumb question, only a dumb answer. If you don’t understand why a procedure, medicine or other things are happening to or around you. ASK!
3. Get YOUR care done by somebody you know!
Doctors, nurses and other front-line medical workers are there to HELP you but having somebody you know, such as your own doctor, will make a world of difference in easing your stress levels. Somebody you have a medical relationship with will also have knowledge about YOU that maybe another practitioner doesn’t which may affect outcomes. Always make sure your personal doctor knows you are in a hospital undergoing treatment and feel free to consult with them.
4. Become an open book
No detail is too small or insignificant to be told to a medical practitioner… tell them everything about your health and any conditions you may be suffering from. Knowledge goes a long way towards successful treatment.
5. Become your own expert
If you suffer from a medical condition, make sure YOU become an expert in it. Not only will this help to create informed decisions regarding your care but it also allows you to have an intelligent conversation with your doctor or nurse.
Medications
6. Know and tell your drug history
Every supplement, prescription and over the counter drug you take should be listed along with amounts (quantity / dose) and given to the person caring for you. Drug interactions are a very nasty thing that are avoidable.
7. Allergies
If you got them, be sure to tell!
8. Ask about prescriptions
Your health practitioner will know far more about drugs than you ever will but that doesn’t mean you don’t politely ask them to give you additional details about it which you can then research on your own to learn more about.
9. Don’t over/under dose!
Numbers are usually abstract things but when it comes to medicine, they can have serious consequences if they are wrong even by a decimal point. Be sure to double and triple check all dosing with different people before taking your medicine.
10. Double check your medicine
Don’t assume anything, once you get the medication, open it right away, make sure your name is on the bottle and the dosing is correct. If things look a little odd, point it out!
11. Can you read it?
If you can’t read your doctor’s handwriting, then how do you expect a pharmacist to? Make sure the drug name is clearly legible and be sure to ask him to tell you the name orally as well so the two match.
12. Side Effects are BAD
Every drug, even placebos, have side effects. Make sure you read and understand them before taking medication, prescription or otherwise. If you feel “not right” after taking a medicine, call your doctor right away!
13. One stop pharmaceutical shopping
Most pharmacies now track your prescription history in their computers which also double-check automatically for drug interactions and other possible hazards. Make sure you consolidate all your prescriptions at one pharmacy.
14. Measure
Pills may be easy to use but sometimes medication comes in other forms which aren’t as easy to measure. Ask your doctor or pharmacist if there is an easy way to get the right dosage if your drug is in powder or liquid form. If needed, ask them to show you how to properly administer the correct dosage in front of you.
Surgery
15. Know what is going on!
If you are going for surgery, after educating yourself as to what will be done to you, make sure that those responsible for your care ALSO have this knowledge. If there are complications, you want somebody who knows both YOU and the procedure to make an informed decision on your behalf.
16. Surgery is to be avoided
If you don’t need something done, don’t get it done. Packing-in multiple surgeries in one shot may also sound efficient and possibly save you some coin but it also exponentially increases the risk and damage being doen as well.
17. Deal with specialty hospitals
Some hospitals are well known for certain medical procedures, make sure you go THERE to get your surgery done. For instance, if you have a hernia, try to go to a hospital or clinic that specializes in hernias… the motto of “practice makes perfect” holds very true in the medical field.
18. Know your Surgeon
Is your surgeon specialized in the surgery he or she is about to perform on you? Do they have all the right and up-to-date credentials? These are things that are best known BEFORE surgery than in a recovery room.
19. Know what is going on!
This needs to be repeated, if you don’t know what is going on and your caregiver is in the same boat… you are asking for problems. Educate yourself and your caregiver BEFORE surgery.
20. Deal with specialists
Specific conditions require specific knowledge, if you are about to go under the knife, make sure you deal with specialists and even better, get a second opinion as well if you have any doubts.
21. Mark your body!
It seems the media is full of stories of surgeons amputating the wrong limb, doing the wrong procedure on the wrong patient and even leaving tools of the trade behind. If you are going in for surgery, MARK YOUR BODY with the name of the surgery and if you have two of them, make sure your doctor, with pen, marks the incision area with a EXTRACT / CUT / TIE (etc.) LEFT or RIGHT as well. The last thing you need in surgery is having to do it again because the wrong side was fixed 
Hospital Stays
22. Keep yourself up to date!
If you haven’t heard back regarding a test of any kind that was performed on you, make sure you ask and find-out the results. Don’t assume no news is good news… especially in a hospital with overworked and underpaid staff.
23. General Hygene
Wash YOUR hands before you touch any wounds and make sure your health care provider does the same. The last thing you need in a hospital recovering from a condition is to get another one!
24. Freedom! Almost…
You got out of the hospital… GREAT! But do you know what you have to do to make sure you don’t return? If no, make sure you do. Some conditions require specific treatments to be performed.
25. Assign a caregiver
Sometimes you are unable or unwilling, due to the nature of your condition, to tell a medical practitioner what is going on. Make sure that at least one person in this world knows both you and your condition so they can make decisions on your behalf.
BONUS
Getting sick sucks, going to a hospital sucks even more… avoid both by living a healthy lifestyle, don’t smoke, drink or do too many crazy things in a row.
The Bottom Line
Become your own health advocate!
Source:
25 Tips to Help Protect Yourself from Medical Errors By Heather Johnson
Second medical opinions should be standard for serious conditions or when a doctor tells you that you suffer from a disease which you disagree with. Here is what can happen if you don’t.
