Ohio residents and other patients may have the ability to store their medical records electronically. However, it is still possible that errors will be made. In fact, one academic believes that up to 70 percent of patient records have some sort of mistake on them. One woman found out that her records showed she had two children and diabetes; that would have meant having her first child at age 13, but she had never been pregnant before. She found out about the diabetes mistake after being asked about her blood sugar during a doctor’s appointment.
While not all errors are extreme, they could still result in a negative outcome for a patient. It is believed that more than 250,000 people die each year as the result of a medical error, and some estimates place the figure at closer to 400,000 annually.
Unfortunately, it can be difficult to correct an error once it has been discovered. This is partially because doctors and other medical professionals don’t like to admit their mistakes. It is also possible that patients lie or otherwise attempt to conceal potentially embarrassing information. In addition, unlike some other countries, there is no unique identifying information for a patient. Therefore, mistaken identity can result in an error that may be difficult to fix, and residents may also make mistakes when dealing with multiple patients at once.
Those who have been victims of medical errors may wish to hire medical malpractice injury lawyers to help with their case. It may be possible for an attorney to verify that the issue was related to negligence or malpractice. For instance, legal counsel may use statements from a doctor to show that an error occurred. Doing so may be enough for a patient to receive compensation in a case.