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I'm Sorry |
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Apologizing for medical errors is a relatively new concept; for years, physicians and nurses were trained not to admit mistakes, out of fear of litigation and out of a culture that emphasized personal responsibility for errors. After studies have indicated that litigation can be avoided by apologizing, the practice has become more wide spread. Articles in the Washington Post and Boston Globe in the last few months have brought this topic into mainstream media. As a result, patients are more aware of medical errors and have an expectation that they will be told about an error, about why the error occurred, and about how the health care organization will keep errors from happening again. While most physicians agree in theory that an error should be fully disclosed, many support "partial disclosure" in practice, by mentioning the error, but without discussing their role in the error or its effect on the patient's health.
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