“Medical errors are a quiet and largely unseen tragedy. Every year between 210,000 and 440,000 Americans die as a result of medical errors and other preventable harm at hospitals, according to researchers.”

These numbers are equivalent to a jumbo jet crashing every day with no survivors. Based on these figures, medical errors could be considered the third-leading cause of death in America, behind heart disease (more than 590,000 a year) and cancer (more than 570,000 a year).
So last spring, Senator Boxer wrote to federal officials urging them to put together a single, unified list. In July 2013, the Partnership for Patients – a new public-private partnership funded through the Affordable Care Act – responded by releasing a list of the 9 most common medical errors:
• Adverse Drug Events
• Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections
• Central Line-Associated Blood Stream Infections
• Injuries from Falls and Immobility
• Obstetrical Adverse Events
• Pressure Ulcers (Bedsores)
• Surgical Site Infections
• Venous Thromboembolism (Blood Clots)
• Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia 3
* to read the full report highlight and click on open hyperlink http://www.boxer.senate.gov/en/press/related/Medical_Errors_Report.pdf