Medication prescription errors among the top healthcare concerns of Singaporeans: report

28% of complaints were a result of negligence.

Mounting concerns plague Singaporeans about the state of their healthcare as they worry about inadequate patient handovers between caregivers, and failure to correctly conduct independent double checks.

According to a report by AIG, medical prescription errors are also a top concern as more patients get treated by multiple public and private healthcare professionals.

“Out of 141 complaints, one of the most common causes was professional negligence or incompetence which accounted for 28 per cent of complaints,” the report noted.

Meanwhile, the report added that the city-state has seen a 300% increase in medical malpractice insurance enquiries in the last year by both healthcare institutions and professionals, with a significant proportion from senior healthcare organisations.

“While hospitals and healthcare professionals have no legal obligation to insure themselves, we are seeing a strong rise in demand for medical malpractice insurance due to the increased pressures on medical staff driven by factors such as an ageing population,” said Dr Aileen Killen, AIG’s head of casualty risk consulting for healthcare.