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. 2020 Dec 23;28(4):685–694. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocaa293

Table 2.

Barriers to speaking up cited by participantsa who found a serious mistake in their notes but did not contact their provider’s office

Reason Overall n = 270 Patient n = 194 Family Member n = 76
I didn’t know I could report a mistake 164 (61%) 113 (58%) 51 (67%)
I don’t want to be thought of as “difficult” or a “troublemaker” 92 (34%) 65 (34%) 27 (36%)
I didn’t know whom to call or talk to 72 (27%) 50 (26%) 22 (29%)
I am not sure it’s important 63 (23%) 48 (25%) 15 (20%)
I am worried I might make my provider annoyed 58 (22%) 39 (20%) 19 (25%)
Nothing would be done about it 56 (21%) 42 (22%) 14 (18%)
My provider(s) are too busy 49 (18%) 37 (19%) 12 (16%)
I am too busy 47 (17%) 38 (20%) 9 (12%)
I don’t want to get my provider(s) in trouble 21 (8%) 17 (9%) 4 (5%)
I am afraid of seeming like I don’t understand medical words 5 (2%) 4 (2%) 1 (1%)
Otherb 69 (26%) 52 (27%) 17 (22%)
a

participants could select up to 3 reasons; the total n is therefore greater than the number of respondents (n = 270). Data was missing for 2 participants.

b

Most responses in the “Other” category reflected participants’ plan to speak up later, such as at their next visit, and/or preferences to discuss the issue with their primary care doctor rather than a specialist.