Figure 3. Distribution across 5 domains of care for all errors (N = 184) reported in 75 incidents and for proximal (first or underlying) and distal (final or ultimate) errors at either end of the cascades (N = 83 and 84, respectively).

Note: Distal errors predominantly involve treatment, but communication errors predominate at the outset. Treatment = errors in administering treatments, medications, immunizations, and care plans; diagnosis = errors in screening, diagnostic examination and testing, and interpretation of findings; informational communication (IC) = errors in processing messages, instructions, and medical record data; personal communication (PC) = errors in interpersonal communication among providers and patients.