The Misdiagnosis Association and Research Institution

This essay highlights the important global-scale contribution that MARI plays in many different fields, such as technology, pharmaceutical, nutrition, law, and veterinary to name a few. However, the key emphasis of this paper is focused on the role that MARI plays in the field of healthcare. This paper addresses how misdiagnosis is a large but silent problem that exists within the healthcare community and how through the resources that MARI provides help to reduce the rates of misdiagnosis. MARI aids in decreasing the rate of misdiagnosis by providing short, effective, informative summaries of medical conditions that educate the patients and increases the ability of the healthcare providers to formulate an accurate diagnosis.

A common proxy used to measure the quality of healthcare in different countries is to measure the outcome of treatable diseases, including diagnostic errors, which is defined as a diagnosis that is missed or wrongly diagnosed within the healthcare system (Martin, 2018). One may suspect that the rate of diagnostic error would be relatively low in first-world countries. However, a relatively recent article has found that in America, the rate of diagnostic error is 5% or 12 million Americans per year (Singh et al., 2014). Furthermore, another American study suggested that the direct and indirect financial cost of misdiagnosis is around $45-60 billion (Newman-Toker et al., 2013). These findings can be extrapolated to other first-world countries such as Canada, Australia, France, and other countries. Thus, organizations such as the Misdiagnosis Association and Research Institution (MARI) have taken initiative to limit the rate of misdiagnosis.

MARI is an organization that is dedicated to conducting research on misdiagnosis, which is a helpful tool for healthcare providers and the general population. One of MARI’s goals is to produce small subsections on different diseases that healthcare providers can refer to when diagnosing their patients. This is not a primary diagnostic tool, instead, it provides the healthcare provider with key information about the disease to increase their ability to correctly provide a diagnosis. Through this process, we limit the occurrence of diagnosis bias, which is when healthcare providers provide a diagnosis without having sufficient information (Esteban-Zubero et al., 2017). Along with reducing the rate of misdiagnosis, these short, informative summaries can help increase the confidence of healthcare providers who have recently started their careers, as they can increase the accuracy of their diagnosis by confirming that the information matches the description provided by MARI. In the future, it may be effective to integrate these summaries within medical schools to allow future doctors to become familiar with the platform and to give them the opportunity to develop their diagnostic skills early in their careers.

Along with aiding the healthcare community, these disease summaries can be an effective tool in allowing the general population to advocate for their health. For example, the descriptions provided by MARI can educate the patient about the different symptoms associated with different diseases. Thus, when discussing their condition with their healthcare provider, they are able to use the appropriate jargon and highlight key symptoms, which can guide the provider towards providing the correct diagnosis (Judson et al., 2013). Thus, to be able to tackle the difficult challenge of misdiagnosis, it is important to have effective collaboration between the healthcare providers and the patient. Fortunately, the tools provided by MARI can benefit both parties and can lead to lower rates of misdiagnosis. Along with lowering the rates of misdiagnosis, the descriptions provided by MARI can educate the patients about the underlying biological aspect of their condition and to better inform them about their treatment plan. A key aspect of an effective treatment plan is to ensure that the patient understands their medication and why certain treatment plans are prescribed. However, a 2019 article found that 95% of patients were not aware of the most common side effects of their.

medication, which highlights the need to educate the general population on medical conditions (Yadav et al., 2019). Once again, the description provided by MARI can be an effective tool in filling the knowledge gap that seems to be present.

Alongside the important role that MARI plays in the healthcare community, MARI has a vast number of different branches which focus on different topics, such as pharmaceutical, law, nutrition, robotics, and technology, to name a few. One of MARI’s unique and growing fields is the branch of veterinary. In many parts of the world, including Canada, a trip to the veterinary must be paid for by the owner which can be expensive. Having access to informative and comprehendible material allows pet owners to familiarize themselves with common pet medical conditions. As a result, the owner can determine which symptoms are common amongst pets and at which point is it an appropriate time to take their pet to the vet. This can be an effective financial saving tool for pet owners and can simultaneously reduce the wait times and burden on the veterinary healthcare system by only treating pets that have symptoms that may be an indication of a serious condition. In each section, MARI has dedicated time and resources to help improve the field by providing valuable information that can be helpful to the professionals in that field along with the general public. It is evident that MARI has and will continue to have a positive global impact in the vast number of fields it is involved in. MARI is a multifaceted organization; however, one of its main contributions is in the field of healthcare. MARI provides informative descriptions of medical conditions that aid in reducing the rate of misdiagnosis. These summaries educate the patient about their condition and allow them to have more effective communication with their healthcare provider, while simultaneously allowing them to act as a health advocate. Along with the patient, the healthcare provider also benefits from these summaries as they can confirm that the observed symptoms.

At MARI, research, advocacy, and educating others are prioritized to build towards reducing misdiagnosis. Rather than a traditional approach, people at MARI work towards the goals and learn along the way, which creates a sense of unity and bond within the organization. These elements are MARI’s recipe for success and result in better overall patient outcomes. With MARI’s contributions to the misdiagnosis field, healthcare professionals become more aware of the matter and more educated to build better patient care in all countries worldwide.

Similar to human health care, MARI vet steps forward and takes action to improve the quality of life. MARI vet, a branch organization of MARI, works to reduce the transmission of animal-to-human diseases that can present considerable risks to both the health of the pets and their owners. MARI vet works by educating pet owners regarding the transmission of different pet diseases and ways to prevent this transmission.

MARI provides various tools and grounds that healthcare providers can use to educate themselves on healthcare. Most importantly, MARI presents issues in healthcare, data, results, and solutions that are all backed up by research and are carefully assembled by experts in the field, like the organization’s president, Dr. Beigi. In addition, MARI also gives healthcare providers the opportunity to quickly grasp medical news, keep themselves up to date, and receive medical tips via short-read medical news on MARI’s website.

More than 10 years of experience in the field enabled MARI to integrate into different areas that are not limited to just medicine. With much effort, MARI now has various branches that extend to other fields such as MARI Ref, MARI Business, MARI CHARITY, MARI Clinic Online, MARI DENTAL CLINIC, MARI Education, MARI IT, MARI Kids, MARI LAW, MARI Media, MARI MEDICAL CLINIC, MARI Nutrition, MARI Pharmaceutical, MARI Research, MARI Robotics, MARI Technology, and MARI VET.

In addition, MARI has published four medical textbooks and 198 scientific medical papers and recruited numerous experts in the field to work towards the organization’s goals. MARI is now in 6 countries, has 1000 projects completed, and has recruited more than 800 new talents, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and university students.

MARI is not limited to medicine or veterinary. MARI consists of multiple branches ranging from business to medicine, which shows the organization’s approach to developing an educated community in all areas. Rather than a traditional approach, MARI approaches by simultaneously working and learning toward the organization’s goals. This approach creates a sense of unity and bond within the organization and better educates MARI’s audience, ultimately resulting in better community outcomes.

MARI’s approach also differs in different terms. MARI recognizes the effort of doctors to ensure people’s health and safety while keeping the mindset to prioritize the quality of care and minimize errors in treatments. At MARI, the aim is to identify the root of problems with misdiagnosis, for example, the underlying effects that may influence a doctor’s judgment and result in a low quality of care. This is something that differs from other organizations.