Changes in intern attitudes toward medical error and disclosure.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Patient Safety
• Healthcare Quality

Background:

• The 2000 Institute of Medicine report highlighted medical errors, prompting safety initiatives.
• Increased focus on error reduction and disclosure has been a trend in healthcare.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess changes in medical interns' attitudes toward medical error and disclosure.
• To compare intern responses from the early 2000s to the late 2000s.

Main Methods:

• Two cohorts of interns (1999-2001 and 2008-2009) at a university hospital were surveyed.
• Interns responded to hypothetical scenarios involving medical errors with varying outcomes.
• Surveys assessed interns' intended disclosure practices and underlying attitudes.

Main Results:

• Willingness to fully disclose errors significantly increased for both no-harm (38% to 71%) and adverse outcome (29% to 55%) scenarios.
• Primary reason for disclosure cited was 'patient's right to full information'.
• Fear of litigation decreased, alongside beliefs that mistakes are always preventable and that competent doctors hide uncertainty.

Conclusions:

• Interns' intended disclosure practices and attitudes toward medical error have notably evolved.
• Enhanced training on medical mistakes has more than quadrupled, likely influencing these shifts.
• The findings suggest a cultural shift towards greater transparency in medical error reporting.