Term insurance offers a life cover for a stipulated period. During that period, if anything was to happen to you, they give the sum assured of the term policy to your nominee. When you buy a term plan, it is mandatory to submit your medical reports. The purpose of the medical reports is that the insurance companies understand your exact health condition. The medical reports usually comprise basic tests like Complete Blood Count (CBC), fasting plasma glucose, urine test, differential count, cholesterol, and HIV 1 and 2 tests. Apart from these tests, an insurance company may ask you to get some other tests done based on your family’s medical history, the type of policy you are applying for, and your age.
What are the common mistakes that may occur in your medical report?
Miscommunication- Your medical reports may have errors and mistakes if there is a miscommunication in the medical setup. Any information that was given by the physician, patient, lab technician, or nurse may have been misunderstood. It is one of the most common reasons for mistakes in medical reports.
Problems related to the patient– While getting tests done, there is a possibility of issues related to the patient. These include identifying the wrong patient, failure to get the consent of the patient, preliminary patient assessment, or simply being unaware of the needs of the medical examination.
Inadequate staffing – In several labs where medical tests are being conducted, the amount of staff might be quite less compared to the number of patients. In such an under-staffed environment, there are possibilities for mistakes to occur in medical reports.
Incomplete information- When you are filling the forms out for any tests, it is vital to give them all the information needed. As with all the information needed, the medical labs can create accurate results for your tests. Without incorrect information, there can be errors in your medical tests which will directly affect your term insurance policy.
Knowledge transfer- The team that handles the medical test for term insurance may not be well-trained or may have insufficient knowledge. Also, the new trainees may be unaware of the process. This can cause critical mistakes in your medical reports and hamper the results that you submit for your term insurance policy, too.
Technical problems– There are remote chances of this error occurring, but it is still a possibility. Because of technical issues, there is a possibility that the tests may not show accurate results. These issues include electronic and software glitches and calibration issues. It may include the incorrect results in one’s medical records and cause problems in the approval of term insurance.
Human errors- There is a possibility of human errors while filling forms or labeling the samples of the test. Be it from the patient, the nurse, or the lab technician, these mistakes can happen to anyone. If the data is significantly different, it can cause colossal errors in the medical test for term insurance.
How can one prevent or correct mistakes in their medical reports?
One can take some measures as a patient to avoid any mistakes and errors in their path. Here are some things an individual can do to get accurate medical reports:
- Always declare the medical problems and existing ailments to your insurer beforehand.
- Before getting any medical tests done, it is advisable to fast for at least 12 hours.
- If one is unsure of the medical results. It is advisable to get the medical tests done again in another clinic. This eliminates room for doubts and errors.
- Once the medical examination is complete, attempt to get the report copies for your reference.
- It is important to be relaxed and calm when the medical exam is being conducted to get precise results.
- Do not consume any foods of excess salt 24 hours before the medical tests. As it may cause an imbalance in kidney function.
- Reduce the consumption of caffeine before getting the tests done. As caffeine is linked with increased blood pressure and heart rate, causing negative test results.
- If there are any chances of mistakes in the reports, try to find the evidence and get the reports corrected. Especially for the obvious documented and manual errors.
- Also, one should avoid smoking before the exams as it causes a rise in blood pressure.
When an individual gets their medical tests done for their term plan, they can use these tests as evidence to support their claims in case of any discrepancies. Also, people who have a clean report with no health conditions are usually awarded lower premium rates. To know your premium rates you can always use a term insurance plan calculator. If there are any errors or mistakes in the medical reports, it is always advised to get them corrected immediately.
