There could be a variety of steps involved in the process of diagnosing and treating almost any type of medical condition. In some cases, doctors in North Carolina may ask you to undergo imaging procedures, and the evaluation of these images might influence the path they take to care for your well-being.
While radiology is a field that may often play a significant role in the diagnostic process, that does not mean that the results will always be accurate. Studies indicate that there are several types of errors that remain common in this field, and issues of this nature could pose a significant threat to your health.
The types
Radiology is a field in which accuracy may prove vital, and radiology errors could lead to improper paths of care that could only make matters worse. Studies suggest that there are several common types of radiology errors, such as:
- Image interpretation: Studies state that many radiology errors might occur when medical professionals fail to accurately interpret scans or to identify and access any present health abnormalities.
- Inadequate knowledge: There may also be a greater risk of error should a radiologist lack the necessary training and knowledge to accurately read a scan and interpret patient scans.
- Medical history: Comparing a patient’s radiology images with previous scans could also be integral to identifying certain health concerns, and failure to review a patient’s medical history could lead to a greater risk of mistakes.
- Communication: The risks of an improper or inaccurate diagnosis may also be greater should radiology departments fail to effectively communicate the results of imaging tests to all other relevant departments.
Studies indicate that issues such as using improper techniques to review and interpret patient scans and overlooking medical issues out of negligence are also common examples of errors in this field.
What next?
Radiology errors continue to prove far too common, and the results of such negligence could take a devastating toll on your well-being. Regardless of how it occurs, such issues may result in diagnostic errors that lead to an improper path of care or cause your condition to go untreated altogether. The presence of such negligence may leave you facing a variety of hardships in life and leave you with questions about what happened and the next steps to take to protect your future interests.