Thousands of people in New Mexico seek care in the emergency rooms of their local hospitals every year. When people have to go to the E.R., they do so believing that the treatment that they receive will help them to recover from their injuries or illnesses....
New Mexican patients and disclosure of surgical error
New Mexican surgery patients may not always know if something goes wrong in surgery. A survey of more than 60 surgeons working for Veterans Affairs centers revealed that only 55 percent of surgeons reported that they had issued an apology for a preventable surgical...
Disturbing examples of medical malpractice
New Mexico residents might be aware that medical mishaps are an unfortunate reality, but they may be shocked to learn about some particularly disturbing recent examples of medical malpractice. The prospect of undergoing some sort of surgical procedure without the...
Botched plastic surgery causes brain damage in Florida woman
The mother of a Miami woman who suffered brain damage during plastic surgery is speaking out to warn others about the potential dangers of elective procedures. Her story is a reminder that people in New Mexico and nationwide should always check the performance record...
Tips for preventing medical errors
According to a study published in the journal BMJ in May, medical errors may be the third leading cause of death in the country. New Mexico patients who are hospitalized for surgery can take steps to protect themselves from these types of errors. First, it is...
Using robots for surgery
A new development may be of interest to residents of New Mexico. A recent study found that a supervised autonomous robot performed soft-tissue surgery better than its' human counterpart. The researchers, all surgeons at Children's National Medical Center, used the...
Small surgical tools increasingly left in surgery patients
New Mexico residents may have heard reports about how surgeons are leaving surgical instruments in patients during surgical procedures. In fact, these types of accidents transpire about once per 5,500 surgeries. One of the most common objects that surgeons...
Apologies and IT in medical error cases
A New Mexico patient who is harmed by a medical error might not hear an apology after the fact. Although many states have legislation in place to allow a professional to apologize without the act being considered as evidence in a malpractice case, New Mexico lacks...
Infant given unneeded surgery at hospital
When New Mexico parents take their infants to the hospital for basic checkups, they expect doctors and health care staff to only perform procedures that are part of the normal checkup process. One Tennessee family, however, had their newborn mistaken for another...
Hospital fined for medical towel that was left in patient
New Mexico patients may be interested in learning that a hospital has been fined after a surgeon left a towel inside his abdomen during a surgery. The incident occurred in 2014 at the Community Regional Medical Center. The patient stated that he had his bladder and...