title: Moral courage in medicine--disclosing medical error.
abstract: Medical error is an inevitable occurrence that stresses the relationship between healthcare professionals and their patients. The number of errors is shocking; so too, is the revelation that few medical errors are routinely disclosed. When healthcare providers fail to inform patients of harm-causing medical error, then trust in the patient/provider relationship is broken and many ethical challenges surface. To successfully restore trust and perhaps lower liability costs, healthcare providers must avoid pointing fingers and adopt a policy of honesty and full disclosure.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Banja
mesh_terms: D030881:Disclosure; D004991:Ethics, Institutional; D006739:Hospital Administration / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D008318:Malpractice; D019300:Medical Errors; D035502:Trust
keywords: Professional Patient Relationship