For years, comparisons between the airline industry (checklists = perfection), and health care (chaos = inefficiency) have rolled off the presses. Kind of makes you feel like the kid brother (or sister) being told by mom, “can’t you try harder, your brother/sister is always number one in class!”
[…] As the flight begins its descent, a call comes over the intercom: “Is there a physician on board?” Three internists traveling together to a meeting respond. A woman has lost consciousness. She is incontinent and unresponsive, with a strong pulse and intermittent breathing. The physicians ultimately determine the patient has hypoglycemia and a seizure. It takes multiple requests before the flight attendants provide the physicians with the emergency medical kit. […]
[…] in-flight medical emergencies occur frequently. Yet the kinds of approaches that have improved flight safety have not been extended to providing optimal care for passengers who become acutely ill while on board airplanes. […]
Odd. Airlines have their act together on the flying thing. Turns out, they are just as dysfunctional with health care delivery at 30K feet, as we are at sea level.
Hey, I know, not good for the passenger in need, but there is something oddly ironic (and satisfying) about this. Kind of like that older sibling, for once, getting blamed by mom for leaving stains on the carpet.
UPDATE: New York Times feature on the same subject
Point well taken! As the daughter of a Navy fighter pilot, and co-pilot with him in small planes, I will vouch for the checklist though…. My hat is off to the medical profession for its willingness to scrutinize its practices and be actively involved in continuous improvement.
Someone recently mentioned to me the major differences between doctors and airline pilots illustrating that the same fixes may not work for both. I hated working 36 hours in a row, but it’s true that what a pilot needs to maintain their focus while flying monotonously for many hours is different than what a doc needs to maintain their focus while getting called to emergencies in the msidst of doing an admission. Having residents restrict their hours and not stay overnight with their patients may not be the best thing for the resident or the patients. But I’m all for check lists.