Who's On First -- The Frightening Reality of Healthcare Communication

Who's on First is an original comedy skit that was made famous by Abbot and Costello back in the early 1940's. It's a classic illustration of two people talking, but it's as if they are speaking different languages. The longer the skit goes on, the funnier it gets. It's not that their understanding changes — quite the opposite in fact. They continue the conversation, but neither of them ever realizes where the breakdown in communication is happening.

As funny as it is watching these men do this absurd routine, it's not so funny when it happens in real life. Abbot and Costello are obviously frustrated as the routine goes on, and we laugh because we've all been there at one point in our own lives. They completely butcher a simple conversation about a baseball team.

Unfortunately, when miscommunications like this happen in the real world, they can sometimes bring grave consequences. Combine complex subject matter, high stakes, and a time limit where people are racing against the clock, and miscommunications are not only possible, they’re probable. So it’s no wonder that when we take all of this and place it in the hands of medical teams who only work together a few times per month, the results can be utterly devastating.

So just how bad is the miscommunication problem in healthcare? I suggest we let the numbers do the talking. According to The Joint Commission, 80% of serious medical errors involved miscommunication. Reports indicate that 250-400 thousand deaths occur every year due to miscommunication, making medical errors the 3rd leading cause of death overall. Let me say that in a different way: A Boing 777 is the largest commercial twinjet and can carry about 400 people. If we are losing 400,000 people due to medical errors every year, this is equivalent to 2-3 Boing 777 crashing every day. People are afraid to fly, but they have a strange sense of comfort and safety when they're admitted to a hospital. As alarming as these statistics are, every article I've read indicates that the numbers are much higher than what the studies show. When 23,000 malpractice claims were reviewed, it was determined that 7,149 involved miscommunication and 1,744 patients died as a result. Communication is broken, and it's the least effective in healthcare when we need it the most.

At Pulsara, we want to improve the lives of patients and caregivers through innovative communication. This is our purpose and our passion, it's what drives us, and it's why we exist. The time for sitting on our hands is over. When people walk through the doors of a hospital or on the stretcher of an ambulance, they are putting their lives in our hands and expect us to do our absolute best for them. To fail them because of a miscommunication issue is purely shameful when there are tools available to avoid this mess.

I don't know who's on first. What I want to know is who's going first? Who will lead the way for other hospitals to follow? When I work with hospitals, I've learned to ignore what they say. We've mastered the art of clever marketing and eloquent words. Actions tell you who a hospital is, words tell you who they want to be. So who are you?