Sleep deprivation - Not the Way It Seems on TV
Fans of medical dramas often see young physicians going without sleep for days on end, devoting hour after hour after hour to diagnosing and treating their seriously ill patients. Do House’s resident fellows ever rest? Do the residents on “E.R.” and “Gray’s Anatomy” ever get more than a few hours’ sleep? Like traditional medical educators, we always have assumed that sleep-deprivation was just part of the rigorous training, part of the dues a young physician had to pay. We often have extolled their virtues and praised the young doctors’ stamina.
Although the dramas exaggerate many features of medical residency, they hit the problem of sleep-deprivation spot-on. But foregoing sleep for the sake of patients’ needs is neither wise nor virtuous. A recent Harvard Medical School study indicated that almost all medical residents are chronically sleep deprived, and they perform sloppy or faulty work on at least two out of every ten patients because they suffer the effects of too little sleep.
Protracted periods of sleep-deprivation result, first, in intoxication, and then disorientation, hallucination, and finally loss of consciousness. When a young doctor suffers through two or three nights of too little sleep, he or she cannot perform even the simplest, most routine diagnoses or procedures with any confidence.
If one of your physicians has missed a diagnosis, prescribed the wrong medication, failed properly to read your chart, missed an allergy to a medication, or done less than perfect surgical work, you are entitled to damages. Even if, through no fault of his or her own, the doctor has gone without proper rest and food, he and the hospital have been negligent, and they have violated your right to quality care.
Seek an attorney’s advice.
Among Charleston medical malpractice attorneys, Underwood & Proctor lawyers command consummate respect. Colleagues, judges, and clients alike acknowledge the exceptional zeal with which members of the Underwood & Proctor Law Offices team represent their clients, and very few can compete with their track record. These Huntington medical malpractice attorneys have won handsome settlements or judgments in hundreds of malpractice cases. Underwood & Proctor associates can be reached at (866) 400-3920 every day of the year. Call today for a free consultation and case analysis.
