Many Somersworth residents experience diagnostic errors in familiar, high-pressure moments:
- Urgent care or emergency department visits where symptoms are assessed quickly and follow-up is unclear.
- Follow-up delays—especially when test results arrive after a patient is told they’re “fine,” or when instructions are buried in discharge paperwork.
- Busy imaging and lab workflows (including automated result flags) where abnormal findings aren’t escalated quickly enough.
- Multiple visits—the patient returns because symptoms persist, but the underlying condition isn’t recognized until later.
AI can be present in the background of care (for example, risk scoring, documentation assistance, or imaging/lab interpretation support). But the legal question isn’t whether technology existed—it’s whether the care team met the appropriate standard of care when using, relying on, or interpreting the information produced.


