ECRI Data Analysis Finds 70 Percent of Diagnostic Errors Occur During Testing Process

A new data analysis from ECRI found that “issues processing medical tests, delays in referrals, and miscommunication among healthcare staff are key drivers of diagnostic errors.”

One study from 2017 found that 1 in 20 U.S. adults experience a diagnostic error each year, and another study estimated that “795,000 Americans experience permanent disability or death each year due to misdiagnosis of dangerous diseases.”

The subsequent data analysis found that “nearly 70 percent” of errors occurring during the testing process, “including when healthcare staff are ordering, collecting, processing, obtaining results, or communicating results. Twelve percent of errors occurred in the monitoring and follow-up phase; with nearly nine percent during the referral and consultation phase.” 23 percent of the errors occurring during the testing process were “a result of technical or processing error,” and another 20 percent of testing errors were a “result of mixed-up samples, mislabeled specimens, and tests performed on the wrong patient.”

In addition, “women and racial and ethnic minorities are at greater risk, with one study pointing to a 20 to 30 percent increase in the likelihood they are misdiagnosed. This is due to many factors, including providers’ explicit or implicit biases; race-based biases in medical algorithms; barriers to care and insurance access; and communication barriers.”

Some essential components listed for a diagnostic safety program include “integrating EHR workflows, optimizing testing processes, tracking results, and establishing multidisciplinary diagnostic management teams to analyze safety events.”