The most common medical error uncovered by the survey was a perceived misdiagnosis (51 percent). The other common medical errors were:
- Given the wrong test, surgery or treatment: 38 percent
- Given wrong or unclear instructions about follow-up care: 34 percent
- Given an incorrect medication: 32 percent
- Contracted an infection as a result of a test, surgery or treatment: 32 percent
Most (75 percent) medical error events reported happened in a hospital. However, the respondents did not often blame the hospital or clinic for the medical error. Instead, most (52 percent) believe the cause of medical errors is mistakes made by individual clinicians.
The survey was conducted via phone from Sept. 2 through Sept. 28 and 1,224 Massachusetts adults participated.
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