Patient Safety Ethics: How Vigilance, Mindfulness, Compliance, and Humility Can Make Healthcare Safer

Human error happens all too often in medical practice. One recent sobering report indicates that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States. Hoping to reverse this disturbing trend, John D. Banja presents a model that advocates vigilance, attentiveness, compliance and humility as fundamental ethical principles for patient safety. Arguing that the safe delivery of healthcare is one of the most fundamental moral obligations of physicians, Banja reviews the scientific literature on harm-causing medical errors to explore the ethical underpinnings of patient safety and to reduce the severity and frequency of medical errors. Drawing on contemporary research on quality improvement, risk management and medical decision-making, Banja also relies on a novel source of information to illustrate the ethics of patient safety: medical malpractice lawsuits.