Weekend Surgery Linked to Higher Death Rate
18July2013
Some studies point to a so-called “weekend effect,” in which people admitted to emergency rooms over the weekend do not get the same quality of care as those who enter on weekdays.
Now a new study in the British Medical Journal involving patients in the U.K. finds that patients who have elective surgery on Friday or on a weekend are 82 percent more likely to die within 30 days of surgery than patients who had elective surgery on a Monday. In their analysis of 4.1 million patients admitted to British public hospitals from 2008 to 2011, the researchers from Imperial College, London found that the risk of death increased with each day of the week on which the procedure was performed.
The researchers offer two potential explanations for the differences in the outcomes for patients who undergo procedures on weekdays compared to the weekend. They hypothesize that the difference may in part reflect a poorer quality of medical care with reduced staffing levels and less experienced staff on duty during the weekend. The second explanation is that patients who undergo elective procedures on the weekend are more seriously ill than those admitted during the week. The study raises questions about the cause of surgical complications that occur on weekends as well as the quality of postoperative care in hospitals.
Other studies also have identified a “weekend effect.” A 2004 study of admissions to Veterans Affairs’ hospitals in the United States, published in the Annals of Surgery, found a 17 percent increased risk of death in the hospital or within 30 days of discharge for patients who underwent non-emergency surgery on Fridays compared to those who underwent surgeries on Monday through Wednesday.
For years, researchers have speculated that patients who have surgery on weekends are more likely to die because fewer medical staff may be on duty or because the top doctors and surgeons may be off for the weekend.
The quality of postoperative care is critical in the first 48 hours after surgery. So it stands to reason that patients who have surgery late in the week may be at greater risk because their postoperative care will take place over the weekend.
The researchers confirm that there is a “weekend effect” for higher mortality among patients undergoing elective surgery. “A substantial number of patients die as a result of unsafe medical practices and care during their admission to hospital,” they write.
The medical malpractice lawyers at Morrow Kidman Tinker Macey-Cushman, PLLC represent victims of medical negligence by doctors, nurses, technicians, and other medical personnel in Seattle and across Washington.
Source: