Researchers sought to identify and describe breakdowns in the diagnostic process among patients with ischemic stroke to facilitate future improvements in diagnostic accuracy.

Researchers from Montefiore Medical Center worked with Candello researchers to leverage data from the Candello national database to identify breakdowns in the diagnostic process involving ischemic stroke patients.

They analyzed medical malpractice claims from 2006 to 2016 involving ischemic stroke patients of which a total of 478 claims met inclusion criteria. Results indicate that the most frequent breakdown occurred in the initial patient-provider encounter. With this information, organizations can implement targeted interventions that focus on the initial diagnostic encounter, particularly for ischemic stroke patients with atypical symptoms.

Read the full-text study published in the peer-review journal, Diagnosis.

Breakdowns in the initial patient-provider encounter are a frequent source of diagnostic error among ischemic stroke cases included in a large medical malpractice claims database

Liberman AL, Skillings J, Greenberg P, Neman-Toker DE, Siegal D. Breakdowns in the initial patient-provider encounter are a frequent source of diagnostic error among ischemic stroke cases included in a large medical malpractice claims database. Diagnosis. July 2019. (Published online July 11, 2019). https://doi.org/10.1515/dx-2019-0031