An adverse event is any unintended or harmful event that happens during your medical care - like a bad reaction to medication, a problem with a medical device, or an unexpected complication from a procedure.

Documenting these events helps your healthcare team keep you safe and prevent similar problems in the future.

Note: Only your healthcare providers can add or update adverse event records to ensure medical accuracy.

 

Common Types of Adverse Events

Medication-related:

  • Allergic reactions (rash, swelling, difficulty breathing)
  • Severe side effects
  • Drug interactions between medications
  • Wrong medication or incorrect dose

Device and equipment problems:

  • Medical device malfunctions (pacemaker, insulin pump)
  • Implant complications (infections, rejections)
  • Equipment failures during procedures

Procedure-related:

  • Unexpected complications during surgery
  • Hospital-acquired infections
  • Falls or accidents in healthcare facilities
  • Wrong-site surgeries

Near-miss events: Problems that were caught before causing harm

 

Understanding Severity and Outcomes

Severity levels:

  • Mild: Minor discomfort that doesn't require treatment
  • Moderate: Noticeable symptoms that may require treatment
  • Severe: Serious symptoms requiring immediate medical attention
  • Life-threatening: Could have resulted in death without intervention

Common outcomes:

  • Resolved: Problem completely fixed with no lasting effects
  • Resolving: Problem getting better but not completely gone
  • Ongoing: Problem continues and may need more treatment
  • Resolved with lasting effects: Problem fixed but left some permanent changes

What makes an event "serious":

  • Required hospitalization or extended hospital stay
  • Caused permanent disability
  • Was life-threatening
  • Required medical intervention to prevent serious harm

 

What You'll See in Your Records

Event details:

  • Type: What kind of adverse event occurred
  • Category: General classification (medication error, device problem, etc.)
  • When it happened: Date and time of the event
  • When detected: When the problem was first noticed
  • Where: Location where the event occurred

Suspected causes:

  • Medications: Drugs that may have caused the event
  • Devices: Medical equipment that may have been involved
  • Procedures: Treatments that may have contributed
  • Likelihood: How likely each suspected cause was to have caused the event

Impact on your health:

  • New health problems caused by the event
  • How serious was the event
  • What was the final outcome

 

How to Use This Information

Review regularly:

  • Check that all significant adverse events are documented
  • Note patterns in your reactions to certain treatments
  • Understand which medications or treatments to avoid

Share with healthcare providers:

  • Inform new doctors about significant adverse events
  • Share information during emergency visits
  • Mention device-related events before procedures
  • Discuss alternative treatments if you've had reactions

Stay vigilant:

  • Watch for signs of adverse reactions to new treatments
  • Report any unusual symptoms or reactions promptly
  • Don't ignore minor reactions - they could be important
  • Keep track of how you feel after starting new medications

Questions to ask:

  • "What caused this adverse event?"
  • "How can we prevent this from happening again?"
  • "Are there alternative treatments I can use?"
  • "Based on my history, is this new treatment safe for me?"
  • "What should I watch for with this new medication?"

Your adverse event history helps keep you safe and guides better treatment decisions.