Surgical “Black Box” Could Prevent Medical Malpractice
In 2014, CNN reported that researchers in Canada were developing a surgical “black box” that could record procedures in an operating room. The device was envisioned to work proactively, providing real-time feedback to surgeons and using error-analysis software to tell them if a procedure is being done incorrectly.
During the initial stage, researchers used multiple video cameras and microphones to analyze surgeries and determine a baseline for how dangerous certain errors were to patients. According to this research, surgeons average 20 errors per surgery, regardless of their experience level. In fact, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins, “a surgeon in the United States leaves a foreign object such as a sponge or a towel inside a patient’s body after an operation 39 times a week, performs the wrong procedure on a patient 20 times a week and operates on the wrong body site 20 times a week.”
Where we are now
Since the publication of that article, the surgical “black box” has been in service for a trial evaluation in Canada, Denmark, and parts of South America. Researchers have continued to refine the concept and the way it works.
In the meantime, Wade Ayer, a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, has taken up the cause of medical malpractice victims since the his sister’s death from malpractice in 2003. His firsthand experience with medical malpractice taught him just how devastating it can be.
Answers about his sister’s death were difficult to find, and even the medical professionals involved had differing opinions and accounts of the circumstances. He has been working for 10 years to change the status quo. Ayer merely wants patients to have the option to have their surgical procedures recorded. He has not suggested that black boxes should be mandatory, but he has faced resistance from lawmakers nonetheless.
Benefits of a black box
We believe that the benefits surgical “black box” far outweigh any privacy or legal concerns that lawmakers may have, especially if patients are given the option to have their surgeries recorded or not. Medical malpractice is devastating to its victims and far more common than we like to believe. By recording procedures, not only will families have the answers they seek more quickly, but doctors will have an additional teaching tool (if granted permission to use it by the patients or family) to help new, younger doctors learn from their mistakes.
When healthcare providers make mistakes, victims of medical injury can find their lives turned upside down in an instant. The emotional and financial toll of these cases can be very high. If you or a loved one has been the victim of medical malpractice, you may be entitled to compensation. The experienced and compassionate South Carolina medical malpractice attorneys at McGowan, Hood, Felder & Phillips, LLC can fight for your rights and make sure you get the compensation you deserve. Please contact us today for a free consultation.
Randy is the former President of the South Carolina Association for Justice. He has been certified by the American Board of Professional Liability as a specialist in Medical Malpractice Law which is recognized by the South Carolina Bar. Randy has also been awarded the distinction of being a “Super Lawyer” 10 times in the last decade. He has over 25 years of experience helping injured people fight back against corporations, hospitals and wrong-doers.
Read more about S. Randall Hood