Medical Errors - Are These Scientists Devoid Of Common Sense?

It amazes me how critical medicine can be; and rightly so. Scientific analysis differentiates between causation, which is when one action has a causative effect on another thing, and correlation, which is when two things are related but we don’t know why. So, although we correlate a lot of things, for example, the use of a new drug could be correlated to a raised incidence of a side effect, it is difficult to say the drug caused the side effect alone. That takes a lot of evidence because the human body is complex and many things can cause other things to occur.

However, there are some things were deep analysis and common sense run together so closely, that when the scientific community spends research dollars trying to create a causation link, it is just a waste of our taxpayer dollar. So it goes with Summer Medical Errors studies completed over the past 10 years. It is important to know that you should never have any sudden or significant illness in the summer. Especially in July. In the summer new medical trainees start their on the job training at many hospitals around the country. Coincidentally, about when they start their new jobs medical errors rise.

The medical community has tried very hard to link the two. However after significant effort they still can’t say new trainees cause medical errors to rise. Being dumbfounded by this curious correlation the scientists came up with a name for it. It is called the “July Effect”. In July more errors are made and patients have a way of sticking around in hospitals longer than in other months.

Are these scientists devoid of common sense? It takes a third grader to figure out that if you start a bunch of new people, in a new and highly technically, super difficult job, they are going to see greater numbers of mistakes. Duh!!! I am no genius, but this seems pretty clear cut. The Wall Street Journal dedicated an entire article to the 39 studies which reviewed the phenomenon. After reviewing 39 studies and loads of data that medical errors, morbidity, hospital stays and other maladies, go up they still can only say that the correlation is just that, a correlation. Is the government really spending millions on research grants trying to figure this out? Gosh, I hope not. Just ask me. I will give you the definitive answer. YES. Now let’s move on to figuring out more important thing!