A medical malpractice attorney has offered three tips to help people get the best care possible the next time they go to a hospital.
Since then, the Tom Bosworth video posted five days ago won more than 31,000 opinions and dozens of comments from health professionals who supported his advice.
They are: never go to the hospital without a witness, always know who the treating doctor is, and make sure doctors communicate your plan of care.
Taking a friend or family member to the hospital means having a witness if things go wrong (they are misdiagnosed, given the wrong medication, etc.) and the person with them can bolster the patient’s case for medical negligence or simply Better communication with doctors and nurses. .
“It’s always good to have someone there,” he said.
Knowing the doctor in charge (the treating doctor) is also essential to ensure that you receive the best possible care.
Patients are often treated by resident physicians who are physicians but are still in training and are not certified to practice medicine without supervision.
He added that doctors and nurses need to be upfront about what their diagnosis is, the types of interventions doctors will perform, whether it’s antibiotic treatment or blood tests, and if they’re not, patients need to speak up and demand answers.
“So you have to be your own advocate and figure it out,” he said.
Tom Bosworth’s advice is to never go to the hospital without an advocate, always know who your treating doctor is, and make sure doctors communicate your plan of care.
Medical errors, such as incorrect diagnoses or medication doses, kill approximately 200,000 Americans or more each year and harm about 400,000 people annually.
They also result in thousands of medical malpractice lawsuits filed each year.
He said: ‘I know you don’t always have that power, but if you can bring someone with you because you need a witness in case something happens and the doctors deny what you say happened.’
A witness may need to testify in a case or be deposed, and this gives validity to the patient’s testimony.
A common problem, according to nurses and patients, is that doctors often do not communicate effectively with patients, especially when it comes to discussing what type of treatment they plan to pursue.
Withholding a treatment plan can also erode trust between the patient, their advocate, and the doctor.
This can be very distressing for patients and their advocates. Without knowing the entire course of treatment, patients cannot give informed consent, an ethical foundation of medicine.
Bosworth, who specializes in medical malpractice and personal injury, practices in Philadelphia.
His video has received almost a hundred comments, one of which said: “That just happened to me in the emergency room.”
‘I fainted because I was dehydrated and the nurse wrote in my notes that my head was in the bathroom. My sister-in-law was with me, thank God.
Bosworth, who specializes in medical malpractice and personal injury, practices in Philadelphia.
Medical errors, such as incorrect diagnoses or medication doses, kill approximately 200,000 Americans or more each year.
Another commenter said: ‘I was given almost twice as many strong painkillers 1.5 hours apart. Fortunately I caught it. My advice: text the time and dosage of all medications so someone else knows too.’
And a third said, “As a former ER nurse, former medical illness defense attorney, and current medical illness plaintiff attorney, I agree with this advice.”
While residents may not be fully qualified yet, there are some advantages to being treated by one.
Having two medical experts to weigh in, including one who is fully trained and can correct diagnoses and treatment plans when necessary, can help when dealing with a particularly difficult case.