Final answer:
At least 5% to 15% of U.S adults who seek outpatient care each year experience a diagnostic error, and sampling errors can vary the estimate of diagnostic errors by an error margin of ± 3%.
Step-by-step explanation:
At least 5% to 15% of U.S adults who seek outpatient care each year experience a diagnostic error, though some studies suggest that the number could be higher. Diagnostic errors occur when health care professionals do not correctly apply their knowledge to complicated and urgent situations, leading to incorrect or delayed diagnoses. Increasing the sample size can help reduce sampling error, providing a more accurate estimate of the prevalence of diagnostic errors. The error margin reported in some studies is ± 3%, suggesting that the estimate could vary by this amount either above or below the stated figure.