1. Risks: Perhaps July's Reputation Is Justified.
- Author
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Rabin, Roni Caryn
- Subjects
- *
MEDICAL errors , *MEDICAL students , *HOSPITALS , *PATIENTS , *MEDICINE - Abstract
Until recently there was little proof that medical errors spike in the summer when new medical trainees start working at teaching hospitals -- a phenomenon known as the ''July effect.'' But a new review has found evidence that death rates do increase in July, and that many patients stay in the hospital longer than in other months. The paper, published Tuesday in Annals of Internal Medicine, is believed to be the first systematic review of the data from previous studies. While the analysis found inconsistencies among nearly 40 studies examined, the data produced by the largest and best-designed ones indicated that patient death rates in teaching hospitals increase by 8 percent in July. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2011