Healthcare secrets they don’t tell you (but you deserve to know)
If you’ve ever felt like navigating healthcare is a full-time job, you’re right—and what most people don’t know about how the system works can sometimes be the difference between safety and harm.
At Norbella Health Advocates, our mission is to help patients and families make informed, empowered decisions. So we’ve compiled five revealing healthcare “secrets” backed by real data that every patient deserves to know.
Secret #1: Misdiagnosis is more common than you think
When you hear “medical error,” you might picture a wrong surgery or a medication mix-up—but the biggest danger may happen long before treatment begins.
Research from Johns Hopkins Medicine found that nearly 1 in 9 patients (11.1%) is misdiagnosed, and the rate varies widely depending on the condition. For instance, 1.5% of heart attacks are misdiagnosed, but the rate skyrockets to 62% for spinal abscesses and 17% for strokes (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2023).
Diagnostic errors are among the most dangerous because they delay or derail treatment entirely—sometimes until it’s too late.
If your symptoms persist, or your treatment isn’t working as expected, don’t hesitate to ask:
“What else could this be?”
“Can you help me understand what other conditions you’ve ruled out?”
A patient advocate can help you document your symptoms, track test results, and push for a second opinion when needed.
Secret #2: Medical errors aren’t officially tracked
Here’s a shocking truth: Medical errors are not listed as a cause of death on any U.S. death certificate—even though they’re estimated to kill between 250,000 and 400,000 Americans every year (Makary & Daniel, BMJ, 2016).
That makes medical error the third-leading cause of death in the United States—right behind heart disease and cancer. Yet, because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) doesn’t include “medical error” on its official mortality lists, the true scale of the problem remains largely invisible (AHRQ PSNet, 2023).
As the Association of Health Care Journalists notes, this lack of standardized reporting allows the problem to “hide in plain sight” (Health Journalism, 2023). That’s why keeping your own documentation matters so much—because the system isn’t built to track every miss or near-miss.
Secret #3: 1 in 10 patients are harmed during hospital care
You’d expect hospitals to be the safest place to get care—but the data says otherwise.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 1 in every 10 patients worldwide experiences harm while receiving hospital care, and roughly half of these events are preventable (World Health Organization, 2023).
The most common culprits?
Medication mix-ups
Healthcare-associated infections
Falls, pressure ulcers, and post-surgical complications
Even in high-income countries like the U.S., patient harm remains a major issue, often linked to fragmented systems and communication breakdowns.
At Norbella Health Advocates, we encourage every patient to have an advocate by their side during hospital stays—someone who knows your medications, allergies, and wishes, and who can ask the right questions when you’re unable to.
Secret #4: Technology doesn’t always mean safety
You’d think that modern hospitals—with robots, apps, and AI—would be safer than ever. But technology can’t replace human vigilance.
More than 1 in 3 surgical patients experienced complications, of which 60% are due to preventable errors—even in top medical centers (2024 study published in BMJ).
Electronic health records, while designed to improve safety, can also introduce risk when systems don’t communicate well or when clinicians are overloaded with data entry. In fact, many nurses now spend more time charting than caring for patients—leaving less time to catch errors or advocate for you directly.
Technology is a tool. Advocacy is a safeguard. Having a patient advocate who reviews your records, medications, and transitions of care can prevent mistakes that machines can’t.
Secret #5: Organized patients have better outcomes
The last secret might be the simplest—and the most powerful: patients who organize their medical information are safer.
Most medical errors stem from missing or miscommunicated information. When you can provide your own medication list, allergy history, and prior test results, you reduce your risk immediately.
That’s why we recommend that many of our patients set up a digital medical binder using Primary Record. It lets you:
Store key documents (advance directives, medication lists, labs, imaging)
Share access with trusted family, caregivers, or your Norbella advocate
Create health summary sheets for new providers
Sync data from multiple patient portals into one secure place
Owning your health information doesn’t just make life easier—it can save it.
The bottom line: Knowledge is protection
The healthcare system is complex, and even the best providers can make mistakes. But when you’re organized, informed, and supported by a skilled advocate, you dramatically lower your risk.
Norbella Health Advocates helps patients and families bridge that gap—ensuring your voice is heard, your care is coordinated, and your safety is prioritized.
💙 Ready to protect yourself and your loved ones?
Start today by setting up your digital medical binder through Primary Record with our special Norbella link, and take control of your healthcare story.
References
Johns Hopkins Medicine. “Report Highlights Public Health Impact of Serious Harms from Diagnostic Error in U.S.” July 2023. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/2023/07/report-highlights-public-health-impact-of-serious-harms-from-diagnostic-error-in-us
Makary, M.A. & Daniel, M. “Medical Error—the Third Leading Cause of Death in the US.” BMJ, 2016. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28186008/
AHRQ PSNet. “Measuring and Responding to Deaths from Medical Errors.” https://psnet.ahrq.gov/perspective/measuring-and-responding-deaths-medical-errors
Health Journalism. “Medical Errors Are the Third Leading Cause of Death—and Other Statistics You Should Question.” https://healthjournalism.org/blog/2023/07/medical-errors-are-the-third-leading-cause-of-death-and-other-statistics-you-should-question/
World Health Organization. “Patient Safety Fact Sheet.” 2023. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/patient-safety
BMJ Group. “Adverse Events Affect over 1 in 3 Surgery Patients, US Study Finds.” 14 Nov. 2024. https://www.bmjgroup.com/adverse-events-affect-over-1-in-3-surgery-patients-us-study-finds/
