Human error contributes significantly to 70-80% of all aviation accidents. Just as pilot mistakes have the potential to harm people in the event of a crash, paramedics have the same ability to cause unintentional harm when they make medication errors, which kill some 7,000 people every year. Even if errors aren’t preventable, EMS leaders can employ strategies to reduce their impact in the prehospital setting.
Checks & Balances
For more than 25 years, the aviation industry has instituted a system of checks and balances to reduce mistakes. Specifically, United Airlines developed C/L/R (Command, Leadership and Resource management) to minimize error. Since its inception, the program has been adopted not only in many hospital operating rooms, but also by the International Association of Fire Chiefs.