Which type of medical error occurs when the intended plan is correct but the action taken is wrong?

Which type of medical error occurs when the intended plan is correct but the action taken is wrong?

• A. Slips/Lapses
• B. Violations
• C. Mistakes
• D. Errors

Answer: (A)

When the plan you intend to carry out is correct but the action you actually perform is wrong, that's a slip or lapse. Slips are execution mistakes where the right intention is there but the action is carried out incorrectly—think grabbing the wrong medication from the cart or administering a drug via the wrong route due to a mis-specified action. Lapses are memory-related execution mistakes, such as forgetting to perform a step or forgetting to verify a critical detail before acting. This fits the scenario because the issue lies in how the action was carried out, not in the plan itself. A mistake would mean the plan was flawed from the start, and a violation involves knowingly deviating from rules. The term “errors” is too broad to capture this specific distinction.

When the plan you intend to carry out is correct but the action you actually perform is wrong, that's a slip or lapse. Slips are execution mistakes where the right intention is there but the action is carried out incorrectly—think grabbing the wrong medication from the cart or administering a drug via the wrong route due to a mis-specified action. Lapses are memory-related execution mistakes, such as forgetting to perform a step or forgetting to verify a critical detail before acting.

This fits the scenario because the issue lies in how the action was carried out, not in the plan itself. A mistake would mean the plan was flawed from the start, and a violation involves knowingly deviating from rules. The term “errors” is too broad to capture this specific distinction.