GRSJ224Bobby

When you are ill you ask yourself how you can recover and at what steps are taken to ensure your recovery is safe and most effective. Should you be concerned about your illness being diagnosed? According to, How Many Die from Medical Mistakes in US Hospitals, the 2010, the Office of Inspector General for Health and Human Services reported that ‘bad hospital care contributed to the deaths of 180,000 patients in Medicare’ (Allen, 2013). The recent issue of the Journal of Patient Safety says that the numbers may be much higher between 210,000 and 440,000 patients each year, making medical errors the third leading cause of death in America (Allen, 2013). With these figures it really questions how ill are you and how are you diagnosing your illness? When you are ill are you getting treated by doctors and are doctors responsible for determining your illness. According to Naming and Framing: The Social Construction of Diagnose and Illness, diagnoses represent the time and location where medical professionals and other parties determine the existence and legitimacy of a condition (Brown, 1995). When you are ill who is defining your illness? When you are ill I believe you share a responsibility with your health care provider in determining and diagnosing your illness. In the Journal of Patient safety, the results shows that the 10 hospitals in North Carolina showed lower incidence of deaths associated with adverse events because there was high level of engagement in efforts to improve patient safety (James, 2013). How will you determine whether your health care provider is working to improve your safety and will your doctors continue to play the traditional role in your health choices?