Pet owners expect veterinarians to disclose medical errors.

Pet owners expect immediate, transparent communication about all medical errors to maintain trust.

This cross-sectional study surveyed 5,026 pet owners from seven US veterinary teaching hospitals (2021-2022) to assess expectations regarding medical error disclosure. The majority of pet owners (72%) expected notification of all medical errors, with 72% wanting immediate notification and 88% wanting to know about errors with potential to cause harm. Poor communication about errors resulted in lost trust in 87% of respondents, while 58% experienced improved trust when errors were communicated well. Multivariate regression analysis revealed that belief in medical error inevitability was negatively associated with extroversion but positively associated with education level. Pet owners identified communication, misdiagnosis, and treatment errors as primary concerns leading to negative outcomes. These findings underscore the critical importance of transparent, timely, and effective communication strategies when veterinary errors occur, as client trust is significantly impacted by how veterinarians handle error disclosure.

This summary was distilled by AI and may occasionally misinterpret data. Confirm critical details with the primary literature before clinical application.