Poor communication among healthcare professionals can significantly impact patient care and can even lead to malpractice or negligence by providers.
Communication Errors Costly for Patients and Providers
- High Frequency of Claims: Nearly one-third of national medical malpractice complaints involve some form of communication failure. These failures can occur between providers or between providers and patients.
- Significant Financial Impact: Communication failures impose a substantial financial burden on the healthcare system. Cases involving communication errors tend to have higher costs, averaging $237,600 compared to $154,100 for cases without such failures.
- Severity of Outcomes: Communication errors can lead to severe patient outcomes, including death. For instance, in a study, 30% of documented injuries in medical malpractice cases, including at least 1,744 deaths, were caused by communication errors.
Patients and doctors have more communication tools than ever and an ever-increasing ability to share information. However, the issue of healthcare failures in communication persists and, in some cases, has worsened.
Here are some signs that your healthcare professionals might not be communicating well regarding your care:
Inconsistent Information
Conflicting Instructions: Receiving different or conflicting instructions from various healthcare providers can indicate poor communication. For example, one doctor might prescribe a certain medication while another advises against it without a clear explanation.
Did you know? Christopher T. Hurley, Mark R. McKenna, and Clint T. Pierce recently won a record-setting jury verdict of over $41 million for a 72-year-old man who suffered a catastrophic stroke because the defendants failed to properly communicate regarding laboratory testing and medication management of the blood thinning medication Coumadin. You can read about the case here or by clicking the button below.
Misaligned Treatment Plans: If different members of your healthcare team suggest different treatment plans without coordination, it may be a sign of poor communication.
Delays and Mistakes
Delays in Treatment: Unexplained delays in receiving tests, treatments, or medications can be a result of communication breakdowns. For example, essential tests might be delayed due to miscommunication during shift changes.
Incorrect Treatment or Medication: Receiving the wrong treatment or medication is a severe sign of poor communication. This can happen if critical information about your condition is not properly shared among your healthcare providers.
Lack of Coordination
The National Library of Medicine notes the following, “During the course of a 4-day hospital stay, a patient may interact with 50 different employees, including physicians, nurses, technicians, and others. Effective clinical practice thus involves many instances where critical information must be accurately communicated. Team collaboration is essential.”
It is not the patient’s responsibility to deconflict the opinions or recommendations of those professionals. However, it often falls to the patient or their family to recognize the discrepancies and clarify. Here are some issues at fault:
Unclear Roles and Responsibilities: If it is not clear who is responsible for different aspects of your care, this can indicate a lack of coordination and communication. For example, nurses and doctors might not be clear on who should follow up on certain symptoms or test results. A recent case of medical malpractice by a Chicago-area health system is a great example of different providers not transferring instructions and information.
Overlooked Symptoms: Symptoms or changes in your condition that are not addressed promptly can be a sign that your healthcare providers are not effectively communicating. For instance, a nurse might notice a significant change in your condition but fail to communicate it to the doctor.
Your Experience as the Patient
Feeling Unheard: Tulane University’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine lays out issues and barriers in communication in this post on effective communication. These include intimidation, disrespect, rushed practitioners, and more.
If you feel that your concerns or symptoms are not being adequately addressed or that you are not being listened to, this can be a sign of poor communication between your healthcare providers and you.
Lack of Clear Explanations: If healthcare providers do not take the time to explain your condition, treatment options, or follow-up care clearly, it can indicate poor communication skills. It can also lead to mistakes and misunderstandings that can affect your health.
Documentation or Records Issues
Poor Documentation: Incomplete or inaccurate documentation of your medical history, symptoms, or treatments can lead to significant issues in your care. This can result in repeated questions about your medical history or missed information about allergies and previous treatments.
Lack of Accessible Information
Language Barriers: If your records, instructions, prescriptions, etc. are not available to you in your language, this is a warning sign that your provider may not be prepared to speak with you in a way that prevents mistakes.
Technology Barriers: If your providers only allow you access through their app or via a technology you don’t have access to, this might be an indicator that this is not the right provider for you. At the very least, someone from the staff should sit down with you and go over how to access the information you need to care for yourself.
What do I do if these situations apply to me?
- Hold your providers accountable. When you see misinformation or failures in communication, don’t stay silent. It could cost you or a loved one their life.
- Ask for everything to be documented in writing before leaving your provider’s office or a care facility.
- Take someone with you to appointments who can be responsible for making notes and asking additional questions.
- Ask someone to accompany you when your care changes settings (e.g., discharge from hospital, move from hospital to rehab, etc.)
- When you are prescribed a new medication, your doctor should go over any side effects or monitoring. This information is critical to your safety.
Did a communication failure result in death or damage to you or someone you love? This may indicate that there was medical malpractice.
Questions regarding malpractice can be directed to Mark McKenna at (312) 602-1417 (mmckenna@hurley-law.com) or Clint Pierce at (312) 283-4597 (cpierce@hurley-law.com).
