Protect Yourself in the Hospital: Insider Tips for Avoiding Hospital Mistakes for Yourself or Someone You Love [Paperback]

Thomas A. Sharon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 17, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0071417842 | ISBN-13: 978-0071417846 | Edition: 1

Empowering tips to minimize health hazards at the hospital

“Thomas A. Sharon can speak with authority on the subject.” --Washington Post

“…empower[s] patients not only to get well but stay safe while in the hospital.”...St. Petersburg Times

A 1999 Harvard study found that nearly 100,000 people die accidentally in the hospital each year. However, there are ways for readers to protect their health or that of someone they care about. Protect Yourself in the Hospital arms readers with practical and possibly lifesaving advice.

From the ER to the OR, and every ward in between, Protect Yourself in the Hospital provides readers with the tools they need to feel safe and secure during their next hospital visit. Written by an insider who is both a registered nurse and a legal consultant for malpractice cases, this valuable guide covers such topics as:

• The importance of room placement
• Making sure the correct body part is operated on
• Simple ways to prevent such common conditions as bedsores and hospital-acquired infections
• How to advocate for oneself or a loved one without alienating hospital staff
• And more

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Lifesaving information for preventing hospital mistakes, neglect and infections

At some point in life, most of us will have to pay the hospital a visit, whether it's for routine surgery, to have a baby, or for a full-blown emergency. Hospitals are a necessary part of life. Yet while they do save lives, they're also responsible for nearly 100,000 accidental deaths and many more injuries each year--from human errors to faulty techniques to malfunctioning equipment to wanton carelessness. Protect Yourself in the Hospital arms you with practical and possibly life-saving advice to make sure these tragic errors don't happen to you or someone you love.

From the ER to the OR and every unit in between, Protect Yourself in the Hospital provides you with the knowledge you need to feel safe and secure in the hospital. Written by a registered nurse and legal consultant, this lifesaving guide covers such topics as:

• Making sure the correct body part is operated on
• How to prevent bedsores and hospital-acquired infections
• Ways to advocate for yourself or a loved one without alienating hospital staff
• How to avoid the rampant problem of hospital-induced anemia

Learn how to recognize hospital situations that are likely to cause injury or death and learn to Protect Yourself in the Hospital.

About the Author

Thomas A. Sharon, R.N., M.P.H. is a registered nurse with vast experience in a variety of hospitals. For the past 18 years he has been a legal consultant, advising attorneys on hundreds of cases in which hospitals have been accused of preventable errors.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (September 17, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071417842
• ISBN-13: 978-0071417846
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #452,907 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am the only son of Holocaust survivors from Buda Pest, Hungary, born in Miami in 1948. I became a registered nurse in 1977 and earned my masters in public health degree from New York Medical College in 1988. I have vast experience in a variety of hospitals as a staff nurse, nursing supervisor and operational consultant I have also worked for a managed care organization as vice president for medical operations. For the past 18 years I have been a legal consultant, advising attorneys on hundreds of cases in which hospitals have been accused of preventable errors.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading for those evaluating a new neighborhood and everyone else for that matter!, November 19, 2008

By 

Alex P. "Alex P." (Kohler, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Protect Yourself in the Hospital: Insider Tips for Avoiding Hospital Mistakes for Yourself or Someone You Love (Paperback)

I reviewed this book extensively in my blog entry:

[..]

Excerpt:

I've spent a lot of time in hospitals (doing my job as an IT expert and not as a patient!) and had heard about the number of unnecessary deaths that occurred in hospitals. The book's back cover stated that hospitals are responsible for 100,000 accidental deaths and many more injuries each year. Medical News Today, a website for the medical community estimates the average to be closer to 195,000. Regardless of the number, there's a good chance that you may have heard of or even personally know someone who has experienced a preventable tragedy. I know of several myself, including one who lost his mother to hospital error. One of my uncles suffered a severe stroke that left him a vegetable until he thankfully passed away.

Mr. Sharon is a registered nurse who started a second career as a legal consultant who advises attorneys on cases involving hospitals that have been accused of preventable deaths.

The book is a sobering view of hospitals. I now view hospitals more carefully since the book has peeled off the veil of ignorance that I used to share with the general public about hospitals. Most people don't shop around for good hospitals and they should, says Mr. Sharon. For my part, I have worked in one hospital where I know I wouldn't want to be rushed to in the event of an accident. The network office was located in the basement in a room that was obviously an after-thought. Best of all, it was adjacent to the morgue! We had to descend a rusted staircase and walk through a corridor that was lined with gurneys. A gurney is "a mobile bed with wheels designed for transport of patients in hospitals and ambulances." If it came out of the morgue, it's not transporting a live patient anymore.

9 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Protect Yourself in the Hospital, October 7, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Protect Yourself in the Hospital: Insider Tips for Avoiding Hospital Mistakes for Yourself or Someone You Love (Paperback)

Easy to understand and full of useful information. Very informative and intersting. Its a real eye opener but does not frighten the reader because this book is about empowerment.