On Sept. 22, the Institute of Medicine released a ground-breaking report that called wrong or delayed diagnosis a vast "blind-spot" in the U.S. healthcare system, blaming diagnostic errors for harming countless patients every year.

The report is called "Improving Diagnosis in Health Care," and it contends that diagnostic errors occur on a daily basis in the healthcare setting, yet there have not been adequate studies.

The authors of the study concluded that most people will receive at least one diagnostic error during their lifetime and sometimes, the consequences are devastating.

Dr. John Ball of the American College of Physicians, who chaired the committee that made the analysis, said that the problem is significant and serious. Adding that they don't know how serious it is or how much it costs. Referring to the lack of evidence, he said it's one of the committee's most "surprising" and distressing findings.

According to U.S. News & World Report, studies found that:

• About 5 percent of adults receive a delayed or wrong diagnoses in the outpatient setting each year.
• Postmortem research suggests that diagnostic errors are responsible for 1 in 10 patient deaths.
• Chart reviews show that diagnostic errors are responsible for 17% of adverse events in the hospital setting.
• Diagnostic errors are the main cause of paid malpractice claims.
• Diagnostic errors are nearly twice as likely to end in patient death as other medical malpractice claims.
• Diagnostic errors represent the greatest share of total payments.

Getting the Right Diagnosis is Critical to Patient Health

The truth is that getting the right diagnosis is absolutely critical, because the diagnosis is the starting point for future medical care and decisions. In some situations, a diagnosis error stems from poor judgement, shortcuts, or poor coordination of care, giving rise to a malpractice claim.

If you received a delayed or wrong diagnoses and suffered injuries as a result, contact a medical malpractice attorney for help!