Medical Errors due to communication deficits occurring during shift change, on the weekends or when another doctor is covering for the attending physician are often the subject of litigation.
Medical errors are more likely to occur during a shift change or when one doctor signs off to another doctor. Weekends when staff is different or unavailable seems also to result in increased potential for medical errors to occur. Incomplete patient information, missing test results and poor communication among physicians and other healthcare providers result in potentially avoidable and catastrophic errors in healthcare. These can and often result in potential litigation.
Poor Communication during shift change
How often have you wondered what information has been communicated during shift change? How about the doctor that is covering for his partner or