A new study done by the Mayo Clinic has found nearly 9 out of 10 patients seeking a second opinion at Mayo go home with a different diagnosis—completely changing treatment plans and prognoses for some patients.
The study analyzed the records of 286 patients who went to the Mayo Clinic for a second opinion. They found the Mayo Clinic doctors gave 21 percent of patients an entirely different diagnosis, and another 66 percent of patients had their diagnoses refined.
This study isn’t the first of its kind to bring attention to major medical errors. In the last few years, diagnostic errors have been brought into the spotlight in published studies. Johns Hopkins researchers reported they were the third leading cause of the death in the U.S., and the National Academy of Medicine found nearly every person will experience at least one diagnostic error.
A new study conducted by the Mayo Clinic found that nearly 9 out of 10 patients seeking a second medical opinion go home with a different diagnosis, completely changing treatment plans and prognosis for some patients.
The study analyzed the records of 286 patients who went to the Mayo Clinic for a second opinion. They found that the Mayo Clinic doctors gave 21 percent of patients a completely different diagnosis, and another 66 percent of the patients had perfected the diagnosis.
This study is not the first of its kind to bring attention to the main medical errors. In recent years, diagnostic errors have been brought into the limelight in published studies. The Johns Hopkins researchers reported being the third leading cause of death in the United States, and the National Academy of Medicine found that almost every person will experience at least one diagnostic error.
The benefits of another aspect
Despite the advantages, a second medical opinion can be daunting for many patients. Some of the common concerns that people have about second opinions are:
• They will offend their doctors
• It will take too much time and will delay treatment
• They cannot afford to see another doctor and pay to repeat the tests
• There is no other doctor on the network nearby
• They do not know enough about their condition to doubt their doctors
However, as stated by Mark L. Graber, MD, a researcher at the RTI International research institute and founder of the Society for Improve Diagnosis in Medicine, in a Washington Post article, "the diagnosis is extremely difficult. There are 10,000 diseases and only 200 to 300 symptoms. Doctors are human and make the same cognitive errors we all do. If you are diagnosed seriously or if you do not respond as you should [to drugs], a second medical opinion is a good idea. Because fresh eyes catch mistakes. "
A different kind of second opinion
Ashadidi is the solution that makes the second medical opinion process easy and convenient for all our members, without sacrificing clinical quality. Because the MediKlik service is provided by employers, insurers and other organizations, there are no costs for members. Furthermore, all case reviews are made confidentially by telephone and internet, so members do not have to travel.
We draw from over 50,000 world-class experts in 450 specialties and sub-specialties, allowing us to match members with leading experts in their conditions for a thorough review of the case. Each member is also paired with a doctor of MediKlik, who completes a complete recruitment, coordinates the collection of documents, prepares a clinical summary for the expert and supports the member during the review.
With our second-level counseling service, we guarantee members the right diagnosis and the right treatment, in order to have the peace of mind they deserve when they face a medical challenge.
About Us
Ashadidi provides virtual doctor consultation facility through which patients can consult a doctor at their home thus reducing time wasted in long waiting queues and traveling cost at the same time.
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