Beyond Morbidity and Mortality Conference: How Do We Learn From Special Cases?

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Otolaryngology
• Clinical Case Analysis

Background:

• Physicians encounter complex clinical cases, including near misses and ethical dilemmas, that are not typically presented in traditional morbidity and mortality (M&M) conferences.
• There is a need for a dedicated educational forum to discuss and analyze these challenging cases that fall outside standard M&M criteria.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate the "Scary Cases Conference" as an innovative educational forum for physicians.
• To provide a platform for sharing and analyzing challenging clinical cases beyond the scope of traditional M&M conferences.

Main Methods:

• Conducted 11 regional and 10 national "Otolaryngology Scary Cases" conferences and mini-seminars between 2011 and 2021.
• Analyzed 187 presented cases based on specialty, management challenges, and comparison to M&M conference criteria.

Main Results:

• 62% of cases involved medical problems, 21% legal issues, and 17% ethical dilemmas.
• Medical cases frequently involved airway obstruction (31%), nerve injuries (17%), and malignancy (17%).
• 49% of "scary cases" met M&M criteria, while 25% were near misses and 26% were ethical/legal dilemmas not classifiable as morbidity, mortality, or near miss.

Conclusions:

• The Scary Cases Conference serves as a valuable peer-to-peer learning forum for impactful clinical case dissemination.
• This innovative format captures a significant number of challenging cases, including ethical and legal issues, that are often excluded from traditional M&M conferences.
• The Scary Cases model can be expanded to encompass a broader range of clinical challenges, enhancing medical education across specialties.