BMJ Editorial: Abandon the term "second victim"

Summary

Families of patients who died after medical errors argue that it’s time to abandon the term “second victim” to describe doctors who are involved in a medical error.

In an editorial published by The BMJ, Melissa Clarkson at the University of Kentucky and colleagues say that by referring to themselves as victims, “healthcare providers subtly promote the belief that patient harm is random, caused by bad luck, and simply not preventable.”

This mindset “is incompatible with the safety of patients and the accountability that patients and families expect from healthcare providers,” they argue.