The medical profession is physically and mentally demanding. For decades, a Herculean work ethic has prevailed among many doctors. Increasingly, however, more and more doctors are realizing that they failed to recognize a serious risk to their patient's health: themselves.
In a recent study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), researchers surveyed 537 medical residents at 12 medical facilities across the country. Nearly 58 percent of these residents worked while sick at least once, and 31 percent treated patients while ill more than once. At one facility, all the residents reported coming to work sick. With demanding schedules and workloads, sleep-deprived and illness-compromised residents opted to care for their patients instead of taking care of themselves.
The increased risk of medical malpractice in these situations is disturbing.
To be sure, doctors' work ethic is admirable in many respects. They go through an intense training period, and most of them work hard to deliver quality care to patients. But the reality is that a sick doctor is a compromised doctor who becomes more likely to commit medical errors.
More broadly, the phenomenon of sick employees coming to work sick carries huge costs. Estimates place it as high as $150 billion a year. But the impact of the problem is greatest in the healthcare field, where doctors and nurses make important decisions every day that affect patients' health.
One solution could involve self-regulation and clearly defined standards for physicians. Another possible aid would be a paradigm shift in the health care culture. Physicians and staff should consider taking time off when sick, and facilities should offer unrestricted sick leave or mandatory time off for sick health care professionals. While patient safety should be the motivating factor in these situations, doctors and their facilities should also consider liability risks.
An impaired doctor is more likely to make errors, which can result in patient injury or death. Almost half of the states have laws that limit damages for malpractice cases or set caps for damage awards. These laws may allow for recovery of actual losses, but limit punitive (pain and suffering) claims; however, some courts, including the Illinois Supreme Court, have held these caps and damage limitations to be unconstitutional.
When a doctor takes the Hippocratic Oath, he or she pledges to uphold the standards of his or her profession. Patient safety should be the foundation for all of a physician's actions, including the decision of whether to report to work.
