New platform for treatment errors in Austria
Austria offers an excellent medical offer. Nevertheless, treatment errors can occur. With a new platform, patients and relatives can report this nun.
AUSTRIA. A new platform from Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Digital Health and Patient Safety together with that Austrian Patient Advisory Board offers patients and their relatives, healthcare providers and interested citizens the opportunity to tell their personal stories about medical errors.
One in 1,000 patients die due to medical errors
To date, there are hardly any figures on the frequency of treatment errors in Austria, and there is little public discourse. For comparison: In Germany, according to the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute, treatment errors occur in one percent of all hospital treatments, 0.1 percent of all patients treated in hospital die as a result of a treatment error – that’s one in 1,000 patients. According to Maria Kletečka-Pulker, deputy board member, managing director and research associate at the Institute for Ethics and Law in Medicine, the figures can be applied to Austria because the systems cover each other. The question is whether this knowledge really leads to more security, or whether these registrations do not involve even more administration.
How the Medical Malpractice Project works
The project has now been launched to raise public awareness of the topic. Until the end of December you can give your opinions as well as personal ones Share experiences on the subject of medical errors on the platform. Based on the results, expert workshops are held with citizens, during which joint measures and information campaigns are planned and implemented. These are intended to initiate a public discourse on the subject of treatment errors and error culture in the medical field as well as sustainable changes in the Austrian health care system in order to further improve patient safety in Austria.
So far, the majority of the feedback on the new platform has come from female participants (approx. 75 percent) with primarily higher educational qualifications (approx. 60 percent “university / technical college / university-related teaching institute or college”), as the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute explains when asked.
What are the most common cases of medical malpractice?
According to Kletečka-Pulker, the number of treatment errors and the consequences of unexpected clarification is roughly the same in Austria. Kletečka-Pulker: “There is no magic formula for providing the right legal information, it always depends on the patient. Does he have previous experience, what is important for him to know? For doctors, this means a great challenge in practice.” And further: “Treatment errors happen to all of us and I always advise patients to go out of court. It always takes an extremely long time in court, costs a lot of money and when it comes out that If something went wrong, the insurance company will regulate it accordingly.”
Page mix-ups should no longer occur
Treatment errors are common in orthopaedics, beauty and gynaecology, says Kletečka-Pulker. It also integrated so-called never events, which are page mix-ups that are not necessary. “There are now so many auxiliary tools that can limit the pool of errors. Then, of course, there are also errors that are caused by human error,” says the expert. However, many patients have the feeling that doctors can now do everything because the media promises so much, which often leads to great dissatisfaction.
List of patient advocates in Austria
The patient advocacy offices provide information about patients’ rights and mediate in disputes, clear deficiencies and abuses and support out-of-court dispute resolution after treatment errors. An attempt is made to bring about a solution to a conflict without the help of the court. All patient advocate services are free of charge. However, patient advocates are not entitled to represent you in court in the event of disputes.
In some federal states (such as Upper Austria or Vorarlberg), hospitals are legally obliged to call ombudsman offices directly at the hospital, to which patients can turn with questions and complaints.
The patient advocacy offices in the federal states:
Ombudsman for Health, Patients and Disabled Persons in Burgenland
Technology center Eisenstadt, component 5 – ground floor
Marktstrasse 3
7000 Eisenstadt
Phone: 02682/600-2153
Fax: 057-600/2171
Email: [email protected]
Patient Advocacy Carinthia
Völkermarkterring 31
9020 Klagenfurt
Phone: 050536/57102
Fax: 050536/57100
Email: [email protected]
Lower Austrian Patient and Nursing Advocacy
Landhausplatz 1, house 13 (entrance: Neue Herrengasse)
3109 St. Poelten
Phone: 02742/9005-15575
Fax: 02742/9005-15660
Email: [email protected]
ooh patient and caregiver representation
station square 1
4021 Linz
Phone: 0732/7720-14215
Fax: 0732/772021-4355
Email: [email protected]
Salzburg patient representation
Michael-Pacherstrasse 36
5020 Salzburg
Phone: 0662/8042-2030
Fax: 0662/8042-3204
Email: [email protected]
Patient and Nursing Ombudsman
Friedrichgasse 9
8010 Graz
Phone: 0316/877-3191
Fax: 0316/877-4823
Email: [email protected]
Patient representative Tyrol
Meraner Strasse 5 (1st floor)
6020 Innsbruck
Phone: 0512/508-7702
Fax: 0512/508-7705
Email: [email protected]
Patient Advocacy Vorarlberg
Marketplace 8
6800 Feldkirch
Phone: 05522/81553
Fax: 05522/81553-15
Email: [email protected]
Vienna Nursing and Patient Advocacy
Ramperstorffergasse 67
1050Vienna
Phone: 01/5871204
Fax: 01/5863699
Email: [email protected]
More on the subject:
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Doctor in court for tragic medical malpractice