Algorithms are commonly used to guide clinical decision-making, but concerns have been raised regarding bias due to the use of race-based data. This qualitative analysis examined perspectives of 42 stakeholders (e.g., individuals, representatives from clinical professional societies or payers, etc.) regarding the use of race- and ethnicity-based algorithms in healthcare. Seven themes were identified, highlighting concerns regarding bias, algorithm transparency, lack of standardization regarding how race and social determinants are collected and defined, and the use of a social construct as a proxy in clinical decision-making.

… the development, implementation, and sustainment of a novel method of investigation. The e-Autopsy/e-Biopsy … abdominal aortic aneurysms , and advanced colon cancer. … Kanter MH, Ghobadi A, Lurvey LD, et al. The e-Autopsy/e-Biopsy: a systematic …

… – or the spontaneous emergence of the correct answer at a later point in time – can be incorporated into the … both critical and creative thinking.   … Shimizu T, Graber M. How insight contributes to diagnostic excellence. …

In 2019, a consensus group identified twelve competencies to improve diagnostic education. This article details next steps for incorporating competencies into interprofessional health education: 1) Developing a shared, common language for diagnosis, 2) developing the necessary content, 3) developing assessment tools, 4) promoting faculty development, and 5) spreading awareness of the need to improve education in regard to diagnosis.

Common Formats for Event Reporting allow organizations to collect and share standardized adverse event data. This study conducted a usability assessment of AHRQ’s proposed Common Formats Event Reporting for Diagnostic Safety (CFER-DS). Feedback from eight patient safety experts was generally positive, although they also identified potential reporter burden, with each report taking 30-90 minutes to complete. CFER-DS Version 1.0 is now available.

While falls are common in older adults, there was a 31% increase in death due to falls in the U.S. from 2007-2016, partially associated with the increase in older adults in the population. This mixed methods study looked at the prevalence, risk factors, and contributors to potentially harmful medication dispensed after a fall/fracture of patients using the Potentially Harmful Drug-Disease Interactions in the Elderly (HEDIS DDE) codes. There were 113,809 patients with a first time fall; 35.4% had high-risk medications dispensed after their first fall. Interviews with 22 physicians identified patient reluctance to report falls and inconsistent assessment, and documentation of falls made it challenging to consider falls when prescribing medications.

… field, researchers developed the Diagnosis Learning Cycle, a model intended to improve diagnosis through peer feedback . …

… Acad Med … Root cause analysis (RCA) is a common method to investigate adverse events and identify … authors developed simulated RCAs that were applicable to a broad set of specialties and included other healthcare … … Ziemba JB, Berns JS, Huzinec JG, et al. The RCA ReCAst: a root cause analysis simulation for the interprofessional …

… Three hospitals in one health system implemented a voluntary error reporting system for clinicians to report … were still benefits: it captured novel errors, provided a safe space to report those errors, and encouraged secondary … into causes of the errors. … Lurvey LD, Fassett MJ, Kanter MH. Self-Reported Learning (SRL), a voluntary incident …

Older adults taking potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs) are at increased risk of adverse events including falls. Patients and primary care providers described their knowledge and awareness of risk of falls related to PIMs, deprescribing experiences, and barriers and facilitators to deprescribing. Patients reported lack of understanding of the reason for deprescribing, and providers reported concerns over patient resistance, even among patients with falls. Clinician training strategies, patient education, and increased trust between providers and patients could increase deprescribing, thereby reducing risk of falls. 

To reduce diagnostic errors, the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) recommends increasing nursing engagement in the diagnostic process. This article reviews the current state of diagnostic education in nursing training and suggests inter-professional individual and team-based competencies to improve diagnostic safety.

… result in patient harm. This literature review identified a set of emergency department (ED)-focused electronic health …

… of point-of-care or bedside testing. … Wright B, Lennox A, Graber ML, et al. Closing the loop on test results to reduce communication failures: a rapid review of evidence, practice and patient …

This study analyzed malpractice claims to characterize nursing involvement in diagnosis-related (n=139) and failure-to-monitor malpractice (n=647) claims. The most common contributing factors included inadequate communication among providers (55%), failure to respond (41%), and documentation failures (28%). Both diagnosis-related and physiologic monitoring cases listing communication failures among providers as a contributing factor were associated with a higher risk of death (odds ratio [OR]=3.01 and 2.21, respectively). Healthcare organizations need to take actions to enhance nurses’ knowledge and skills to be better engage them in the diagnostic process, such as competency training and assessment.

… BMJ Qual Saf … BMJ Qual Saf … This study used a mixed-methods approach to characterize the impact of two … institutions. Students in these programs reported a positive impact of the fellowship on their careers, with …

… Diagnosis (Berl) … Mitigating diagnostic error has become a critical patient safety concern . As a result, medical education and training programs are … safety. This article describes the development of a novel interprofessional framework to improve diagnostic …

The hectic pace of emergency care detracts from reliability. This review examined the literature on evidence, practice, and patient perspectives regarding diagnostic error in the emergency room. A WebM&M commentary discussed an incident involving a diagnostic delay in the emergency department.

Standardized approaches can enhance team communication, process reliability, and diagnostic thinking. This commentary suggests that checklist use is an underutilized low-cost intervention to reduce diagnostic error. The authors describe process checklists, which can can help manage cognitive challenges, and content checklists, which provide differential diagnoses for common symptoms.

Prior research has shown that educational interventions can be developed to teach trainees about cognitive biases that contribute to diagnostic errors. The authors describe the development and implementation of a virtual patient module to teach medical students about the diagnostic process.