I-Team In-Depth

Medical Errors Decline 3 Percent In 2015

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Connecticut hospitals reported increases in patient deaths or serious injuries due to falls and medication errors in 2015 compared to 2014, but an overall drop in “adverse events,” according to a new state report. The report, by the Department of Public Health (DPH), shows that the total number of medical errors dipped by 3 percent – from 472 in 2014, to 456 in 2015. There were 90 instances when patients died or were seriously injured in falls, up from 78 in 2014. Seven falls that resulted in injury or death were reported at Yale New Haven Hospital, St. Vincent’s Medical Center and UConn’s John Dempsey Hospital.

I-Team In-Depth

Surgical Errors Climb, Bed Sores Decline In State’s Hospitals

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Reports of wrong-site surgeries increased 62 percent in the past year in Connecticut hospitals, while the number of patient deaths or disabilities resulting from surgery or falls also rose, a new state report shows. At the same time, reports of patients suffering from serious pressure ulcers declined, as a number of hospitals made progress in preventing the painful bed sores. The new Adverse Event Report, compiled by the state Department of Public Health and covering 2011, marks the second year that acute-care hospitals and other medical facilities have been publicly identified by name, as they report errors that caused harm to patients. The five hospitals with the highest rate of adverse events in 2011, calculated per 100,000 inpatient days, were: Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, in Torrington (49.2); Sharon Hospital (35.4); New Milford Hospital (32.9); Stamford Hospital (19.7); and the Hospital of Central Connecticut, in Southington and New Britain (19.3). In terms of the sheer volume of events, Yale-New Haven and its affiliated Hospital of St.