Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney Blog | Pomerantz Perlberger & Lewis LLP

According to a new study by the Agency for Heathcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), part of the US Department of Health and Human Services, preventable surgical errors cost $1.5 billion per year, as much as 30 percent more than previous estimates. The study was based on insurance claims filed as a result of surgical errors, and therefore is based on what insurance companies actually paid as a result of the complications.

The most expensive errors were acute respiratory failures, which cost insurance companies an average of $28,218, or 52 percent, more than successful surgeries without complications. Post-operative infections, one of the most easily avoidable post-surgical complications, cost nearly as much, at an average of $19,480 (48 percent). Other noteworthy costs related to surgical errors included

Nursing care associated with errors $12,196 (33 %)

Metabolic difficulties, such as kidney failure or erratic blood sugar $11,797 (32 %)

Blood clots & other vasculo-pulmonary problems $7,838 (25 %)

Wound opening $1,426 (6 %)

Technical problems like accidental laceration $646 (3 %)

Of course, these are costs at the discounted rates offered to insurance companies. Uninsured patients could pay twice as much or more for a preventable surgical error. The study concluded that preventable surgical errors are responsible for 2 % of all medical expenditures.

And this is just the monetary costs associated with surgical errors. The study also concluded that as many as 11 percent of all deaths within 90 days of surgery were the result of preventable surgical errors.

If you have suffered additional costs or even lost a loved one as a result of a preventable surgical error, contact an experienced medical malpractice lawyer at Pomerantz, Perlberger, and Lewis, LLP today for a free initial consultation.