Incidence, origins and avoidable harm of missed opportunities in diagnosis: longitudinal patient record review in 21 English general practices (14 June 2021)

Summary

Diagnostic errors can result in avoidable harm when undiagnosed conditions remain untreated or when patients undergo unnecessary (or harmful) tests. This study seeks to estimate the incidence and origins of avoidable harm from diagnostic errors in English general practice. It defines diagnostic errors as missed opportunities to make a correct or timely diagnosis based on the evidence available.

The authors conclude that although missed diagnostic opportunities (MDOs) occurred in fewer of 5% of the investigation consultations they analysed, high numbers of primary care contacts nationally suggest that several million patients are potentially at risk of avoidable harm from MDOs each year.