From a JAMA Network online release:

This systematic review and meta-analysis of 11 studies involving 21 517 physicians demonstrated an association between physician depressive symptoms and an increased risk for perceived medical errors (RR, 1.95; 95% CI, 1.63-2.33). We also found that the magnitude of the associations of physician depressive symptoms and perceived medical errors were relatively consistent across studies that assessed training and practicing physicians, providing additional evidence that physician depression has implications for the quality of care delivered by physicians at different career stages.

Medical errors are a major source of patient harm. Studies estimate that, in the United States, as many as 98 000 to 251 000 hospitalized patients die each year as result of a preventable adverse event.^1–4 In addition, medical errors are a major source of morbidity⁵ and account for billions of dollars in financial losses to health care systems every year.^6–9

Depressive symptoms are highly prevalent among physicians,^10,11 and several studies have investigated the associations between physician depressive symptoms and medical errors.^12–16 Although most studies on physician depressive symptoms and medical errors have identified a substantial association, their results are not unanimous, and questions regarding the direction of these associations remain open in recent literature.¹⁷

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