Medical errors in Nigeria: A cross-sectional study of medical practitioners in Abia State

Abstract

Background: Human errors in health-care delivery have always been a challenge since the Hippocratic dictum “First, do no harm.” However, to achieve a complete error-free health care is a goal yet to be achieved by health professionals despite technological advances in patient care. Aim: The study was aimed at describing medical errors in a cross-section of medical practitioners in Abia State, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: A descriptive study was carried out on a cross-section of 145 medical practitioners in Abia State, Nigeria. Data collection was done using pretested, self-administered questionnaire that elicit information on types, committal, disclosure, and attitude to medical errors. Lawsuits and psychological disturbances associated with committal of medical errors were also studied. Results: The prevalence of medical errors was 42.8%. The three most common errors committed by the participants were an error of medication prescription (95.2%), error of radio-laboratory investigation ordering (83.9%), and error of physician diagnoses (69.4%). Sixty-two (100%) of the participants who committed medical errors had a negative attitude to error disclosure to the patients and their families. Of the 62 participants who committed medical errors, 33.8% were depressed. Among those that committed medical errors, none was involved in a lawsuit for medical errors. Committal of medical errors was associated with years of practice <10 years (P = 0.011). Conclusion: Medical errors occurred among the study participants with the most common error committed being prescription errors. The attitude to error disclosure to the patient was negative. There is a need for the use of safety net and other protocols especially during prescription while avoidable errors should be disclosed, studied, and openly discussed for error mitigation.

Keywords

• Abia State
• medical errors
• Nigeria
• private and public medical practitioners