Table 2. Types of medical errors.

Categories and descriptions are based on the Harvard Medical Practice Study and Thomas et al.'s study of medical centers in Utah and Colorado.

Type of Error	Description
Operative	Issues arising up to two weeks after a surgical procedure that are the direct result of improper decision making by the surgical team
Anesthesia	Errors occurring during the administration, maintenance or withdrawal of both local and systemic anesthesia
Medical procedure	Errors occurring during a procedure done by a non-surgical team member in some location other than an operating room
Child birth	Errors related to labor, delivery or the post-partum period that result in harm to the mother or child
Drug related	Errors in administering the wrong type or dosage of medication; also includes improper prescription of controlled substances
Improper diagnosis	Patient was either given the incorrect diagnosis or there is a prolonged delay in determining the diagnosis that causes distress or additional impairment
Improper therapy	Patient is either given the wrong treatment or there is a prolonged delay in providing treatment, despite the proper diagnosis being concluded
Falls	Patient falls while under the supervision of hospital staff
Other	All other errors that do not properly fit into the described categories