. 1 Percent Perfect : Healthcare Leadership ’ s Pinto

T he March 16, 2003, edition of The New York Times Magazine’s cover reads, “Half of What Doctors Know Is Wrong.” Inside, the lead story, entitled “The Biggest Mistake of Their Lives,” chronicles the struggles of four survivors of medical errors. The article also makes a projection that in 2003, as many as 98,000 people in the United States would die as a result of medical errors (Burton 2003). The August 2, 2004, issue of Newsweek features an article, entitled “Hospital Horrors,” that reports that estimates of deaths from medical errors are understated by half (Underwood 2004). Is this really the current state of healthcare in twenty-first century America? Sadly, it is. The lack of vision, determination, and adequate management methods of those who lead America’s healthcare organizations are the reasons.