Multidisciplinary Grand Rounds, Danielle Ofri, Professor of Medicine, NYU “When We Do Harm: Medical Error and the Human Condition”

Sponsored by the Department of Surgery, the Department of Anesthesiology, the Office of Faculty Affairs and Leadership Development and the School of Medicine Well-Being Committee.

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Patient safety is a critical issue in medicine today. There is, rightly, a strong emphasis on systems approaches to improving medical care and decreasing error. However, medicine is fundamentally a human endeavor. Without attention to the human aspects of the medical enterprise—emotions, cognitive abilities, biases, communication—crucial aspects of patient safety will remain beyond our grasp.

In an article published in the New York Times, Dr. Ofri highlighted the personal sacrifices health care professionals make to ensure their patients continue to receive high-quality care in spite of ever-increasing workplace demands and administrative burdens. She poignantly describes the growing pressures on physicians and nurses to see more patients each day as well as the extensive time spent documenting in the EHR. The combination results in many providers being forced to engage in “pajama time” (time spent completing EHR tasks in the evenings or other off-hours).

The School of Medicine launched a Well-Being Committee to liaise with and complement the system-wide wellness programs and ensure representation across all SOM Clinical and Basic science departments. This lecture is part of the committee’s work, supporting efforts to communicate effective interventions, disseminate well-being metrics, and champion a culture of well-being across the School of Medicine.