Medical Errors... hope I don't make them.

Today at school we talked about how the healthcare system fails. Doctors not communicating, medical errors, etc.

They asked for a show of hands as to whose family has experienced medical errors, and I felt like I should have raised my hand (because almost everyone did), but I'm not aware of any... which is odd considering the extent of my family's medical experiences. 

I mean, I've made medical errors (case in point: driving to the wrong hospital while patient is in cardiac arrest in my ambulance... story for another day if you aren't familiar (end-stage illness, DNR, but I followed protocol...)), but the only one I can think of is a near-miss...

***If you read any of this post, read this part***

I love talking about my mom so here's a story: (I wasn't there so it may not be entirely accurate)

She was on chemo for many years- an old pro (she'd be mad I called her old, but it fits here). She knew everything about her treatment: the drug name, dose, mode of action... so much that people asked her if she was a nurse. I haven't known anyone to be so on top of their own records and care. 

When you give chemo, you have to check the patient's name, birthday, ID#, and the drug/dose. After a long day, you get lazy- I know from drawing blood in the ER- after a while, you just say, "You're Jane? Hi I'm here to draw your blood." If they confirm the first name, you're good. No further checking the info. But what if there were 2 Janes?... and they were in adjacent rooms?... (Seriously, I did this once- just checked first name because it sounds friendlier, but the woman in the next bed had the same name so I panicked AFTER sending the blood. Luckily I got it right.)

Here's where my mom comes back in. There was a less-experienced cancer patient a few chairs away from her, about to get her treatment as my mom read her book and chatted with the nurses, who were by now old friends. She hears, "Theresa?" and looks up, but the other woman answers. The nurse skips the last name/birthday and rattles off the drug name and dose, while the woman just agrees blindly, trusting that the nurse has it correct. 

The astute woman that is my mother recognizes the chemo to be the exact one that she was about to receive, so she speaks up to the nurse and asks her to recheck it because she has a sneaking suspicion that it is hers. Thankfully, the drug was just hung and not infused yet because it was indeed my mother's chemo. That woman was lucky my mom took responsibility and a personal interest in her own care, and had the guts to stand up and tell the nurse she did something wrong. Having the wrong chemo is so dangerous. That woman could have died that day, but she didn't. 

I am so proud of my mom. I wish that all patients would take the same ownership of their health and treatment that she did. And I hope I can honor her by keeping all my patients safe.