Nurses Often Silent About Physician Mistakes

Nurses Often Silent About Physician Mistakes

March 25, 2011 — Medical software can alert a nurse to a harmful drug interaction, but such a high-tech tool goes to waste if the nurse feels unsafe telling a physician or cannot make anyone listen.

Almost 60% of nurses report they have experienced this kind of scenario, and 17% say it happens several times a month, according to a new study by the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACCN), the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN), and a training company called VitalSmarts. The study, aptly titled "The Silent Treatment," describes a hospital universe where more than 80% of nurses observe physicians and other clinicians taking shortcuts, such as not washing their hands long enough, exhibiting incompetence, and demonstrating disrespect that shuts down lines of communication.