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This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal advice.
Delayed diagnosis causes the slow progression of a disease and increases the risk of the complications of the condition. Disease progression worsens the patient’s symptoms and further lowers the quality of life of the patient.
There are several problems that patients face in the health care sector. A majority of these problems are faced during diagnosis. Diagnosis is a critical stage in patient care because it determines if the patient’s health will improve or not. One main diagnosis problem includes delayed diagnosis. This problem can greatly impact the health of the patient. This is because it delays treatment for the patient’s condition.
Therefore, if the patient was experiencing mild pain, delayed diagnosis can cause it to progress to severe pain. Similarly, delayed diagnosis of cancer causes it to spread and progress to a later stage.
Impact of delayed diagnosis on patient health
Diagnosis is an essential stage that helps determine the patient’s health and the disease-causing organism. These two are useful in determining the appropriate treatment that can improve the health of the patient. Therefore, if a diagnosis is delayed, it has impacts such as:
It causes a worsening of the patient’s condition
Early diagnosis ensures that treatment is initiated early to provide relief for the patient’s symptoms. When the diagnosis is delayed, treatment is also delayed. This, in turn, causes the symptoms of the patient to worsen as the condition progresses. For example, a delay in the diagnosis of HIV/AIDs leads to the progression of the disease. The patient can start presenting with symptoms of stage three or stage four, like tuberculosis and pneumonia.
It leads to the development of complications
Delayed diagnosis also leads to the development of complications of the condition. This is because the condition goes untreated for too long and spreads to affect other areas. For example, when meningitis goes untreated for too long due to delayed diagnosis, it leads to permanent brain damage, causing seizures and even death.
It hinders the patient’s day-to-day activities
Delayed diagnosis reduces the patient’s quality of life and prevents the patient from leading a normal life. This is because the symptoms of the condition worsen and become unbearable. Delayed diagnosis can prevent the patient from undertaking day-to-day activities by limiting the range of motion, causing depression, and many other ways.
It increases the morbidity of the condition
With some conditions, a delayed diagnosis increases the spread of the condition in the population. The condition ends up affecting the health of the entire population other than that of the patient. This can happen with a condition like tuberculosis because it is airborne.
Therefore, the delayed diagnosis of one patient can reduce the quality of life of many people. On the other hand, early diagnosis enables people to adopt early measures in preventing the spread of the disease in the population.
It increases mortality rates
Some conditions are fatal when left untreated for a long time. A condition like cancer can develop to the latest stage when the diagnosis is delayed. This stage is associated with an increase in mortality rates because treatment becomes less effective in treating the tumor that has spread.
Actions patients can take
Every patient has the right to a timely diagnosis when they attend a medical facility. You can take legal action when a physician fails to diagnose a progressive disease in due time, leading to the above health impacts.
According to the attorneys at Morris Bart, incorrect and delayed diagnosis are some of the most common reasons for medical malpractice lawsuits. If a doctor delays your diagnosis and it causes your condition to worsen, they are being medically negligent.
You stand to win the case if you presented all your symptoms to the doctor, and the doctor failed to diagnose you early enough by requesting the necessary tests. Patients with a progressive disease like cancer, diabetes, and fatal infections are good candidates for these cases.
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This content is brought to you by Charles Britton.
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