Dr. Pauline Chen, a columnist for the New York Times, recalled, as she usually does, an anecdote about a former colleague who was working toward becoming a general surgeon.

General surgery, according to her colleague, was an alluring focus of medicine because "nothing scares a general surgeon...they can take care of it all."

However, as Dr. Chen writes, her colleague faltered and failed in more areas than one. Eventually, it came down to his complete realization that he could not do his job effectively. What happened, Dr. Chen wrote, was that he fell down "that lonely and vicious cycle of errors that could unexpectedly and irrevocably spiral out of control."

The column cites a study, conducted by the Mayo Clinic and published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, that focused on the effect of errors on physicians-in-training and on the outcomes of their future patients. According to the article, the "researchers found that self-perceived errors not only increased the risk of burnout and depression but also adversely affected subsequent patient care. Over time, young doctors who believed they had made errors in the past felt less and less empathy toward their patients, which then led to an even greater risk of subsequent errors."

What's important tot take away from this article is the idea that all of us need to be on top of our games, all the time. This can be in the healthcare field by ensuring that protocols are established and maintained.

To read the full article, click here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/09/health/09chen.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=health