Malpractice

The curious cases of the Tenerife plane crash and medical errors: What we see through the Swiss cheese model

Conditions

March 6, 2023

“Even a room with flammable gas will not explode unless someone strikes a match.”
– Dr. Bob Wachter

Case 1:

On March 27, 1977, two 747s collided on the runway at Tenerife in the Canary Islands, killing 583 people. On a foggy morning, the KLM 747 was waiting for clearance to take off. Captain Van Zanten was a well-known pilot with excellent safety records. The KLM crew spotted a Pan Am 747 taxiing …

Don’t hold your breath: Non-competes are unlikely to disappear for physicians

Aaron Morgenstein, MD

Physician

March 3, 2023

Physician non-compete clauses have been a controversial topic for many years. These clauses within contractual agreements prevent physicians from joining or operating a competing practice within a certain distance or timeframe. With the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) looking into non-compete clauses, many people have wondered whether the FTC will finally end physician non-compete clauses.

On January 5, 2023, the FTC proposed a new rule that would ban employers from imposing …

A tale of medical malpractice, the legal system, and a fight for justice

Anonymous

Physician

February 22, 2023

I have been fortunate in my forty-five-year medical career never to have been sued for the care I delivered to a patient. I attribute this, in part, to being a family physician and having ongoing relationships with my patients and, in part, to being willing to admit to my mistakes if I make them and things turn out badly. I see how gut-wrenching going to court is for doctors so …

Navigating the emotional impact of a medical malpractice lawsuit [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

January 27, 2023

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

In this episode, we explore the emotional impact of medical malpractice lawsuits on physicians and how they can navigate the process. Attorney Christine Zharova shares her insights on how these lawsuits can affect relationships with colleagues, staff, …

Insurance company vs. doctor: How the defense and settlement provisions in malpractice contracts favor carriers

Howard Smith, MD

Physician

January 26, 2023

In a medical malpractice lawsuit, your defense is completely in the hands of the malpractice carrier, and, make no mistake of it, its interests come first. However, the medical malpractice insurance contract is more instrumental in the defense of a doctor than insurance companies realize. There are clauses in the contract that, at first glance, seem to benefit carriers. However, there is a flip side to each clause.

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Insurance company vs. doctor: How the defense and settlement provisions in malpractice contracts favor carriers

The importance of a clear contract with your defense counsel in medical malpractice cases

Howard Smith, MD

Physician

January 17, 2023

The prevailing party contract is not the only contract that can protect a doctor in medical malpractice litigation. There is also the doctor-defense counsel contract.

Because of the risk of litigation, doctors often have a contract with a medical malpractice insurance carrier. The carrier offers to cover litigation costs in exchange for premiums, limits on liability, and other terms of coverage. The insurance company is then obligated to appoint and pay …

How to prevent a frivolous medical malpractice lawsuit

Howard Smith, MD

Physician

January 5, 2023

There are 50,000 medical malpractice lawsuits filed per year. Each doctor has a 5 percent chance of being sued each year, and every doctor will be sued at least once in 20 years. 70 percent of medical malpractice lawsuits are non-meritorious and are dropped. These represent 35,000 frivolous lawsuits. Until now, there is no way to prevent a frivolous medical malpractice lawsuit.

America is a litigious society. The medical liability …

Communication protocols exist for a reason

Michael J. Grace, JD

Conditions

December 11, 2022

An excerpt from The Mumbo Jumbo Fix: A Survival Guide for Effective Doctor-Patient-Nurse Communication.

Team building is a popular trend in health care. It promotes cooperation, trust and respect, improves communication, and enhances patient outcomes. Most of the time.

But the camaraderie and familiarity of working with the same group of people …

Don’t lie about medical errors. Apologize.

Alisa Sano, MPH

Conditions

November 27, 2022

Time of death: unknown.

It was around 6 p.m. on April 21, 2013.

My mom saw my grandfather dying slowly in the hospital bed.

She had pressed the nurse call button frantically over the last 20 minutes.

She rushed to the nurse station only to find out nobody was there.

She went back to my grandfather and spent the last three minutes with him.

She was the one who saw my grandfather’s bpm (beats per minute) …

Medical malpractice is a lot like running a marathon

Christine Zharova, Esq

Policy

October 26, 2022

A medical malpractice process is a lot like running a marathon.

The analogy makes it easy to understand why physicians are emotionally unready to go through years of litigation and often find themselves struggling.

To successfully make it through the grueling 26.2 miles, a runner has to be well-prepared.

It’s common for runners to join a running group. Sometimes, engage a coach who can help to train smart.

Runners will spend months building up …

What hospitals can learn from the RaDonda Vaught case

Carmen Presti, DNP, APRN

Policy

October 10, 2022

In response to a medication administration error that led to the death of a 75-year-old patient, RaDonda Vaught, a registered nurse working in Tennessee, was recently found guilty of criminally negligent homicide and gross negligence of an impaired adult.

As a result, she was sentenced to three years of probation with the promise that her criminal record would be expunged if she successfully completes the sentence.

Months after this …

What to do if you’re involved in a medical malpractice lawsuit [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

September 11, 2022

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

“The worry and anticipation of getting sued are heightened more than ever in the wake of the pandemic. It is in all physicians’ minds. I recently did a quick poll in some of my physician groups on …

Breaking the vicious cycle of medical malpractice lawsuits

Howard Smith, MD

Physician

August 11, 2022

Lawsuits are conventional in medical practice.

An unhappy patient hires a malpractice attorney, who hires a medical expert, who interprets the standards of care and generalizes a departure from the standards of care and proximate cause. The preponderance of evidence is 50% certainty plus an ill-defined scintilla, which needs to be only 0.01% to be good enough.

The lawyer sues the doctor, who notifies the malpractice carrier, hires a defense counsel, and …

We’re reacting to medical errors the wrong way

Vidya Raju, MD

Physician

August 7, 2022

Medical mistakes are as old as the practice of medicine itself, but it wasn’t until 1999 that the United States started paying more attention to them.

Over twenty years later, we may be reducing medical errors — a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found significant decreases in mistakes in cases of pneumonia, acute myocardial infarction, heart …

Denying essential medical care doesn’t save money — or lives

Steve Cohen, JD

Conditions

July 30, 2022

That health care in the United States is wildly expensive is beyond debate — but the actual numbers are almost beyond belief. In 2010, for example, health care costs amounted to $2.6-trillion. By 2020, those costs had risen to $4 trillion — an increase of more than 50%. Worse, such increases show no signs of slowing.

Health insurance premiums, out-of-pocket expenses, and direct government expenses all add up to a nearly …

Teen dies when blood culture protocol botched: What can we learn from this tragedy?

Charles A. Pilcher, MD

Conditions

July 25, 2022

It’s 4 a.m. when a 17-year-old awakens at home with severe left shoulder pain that his worried parents call 911. By the time he reaches the emergency room (ER), he has pain all the way to his wrist.

“Any recent injuries?” asks the doctor.

“Yeah, about three days ago, I was lifting about 200 pounds at the gym and noticed that my shoulder was really sore.”

When questioned further, he admits that he’d …

Using inquiry-based stress reduction to treat medical malpractice stress syndrome

Lara Patriquin, MD

Physician

July 11, 2022

“Your worst enemy cannot hurt you as much as your own unguarded thoughts.”
– The Buddha.

On her 44th birthday, Dr. Maya Williams took in all she had accomplished: her recent partnership in her radiology practice, two beautiful middle-school daughters, and the enduring marriage to her medical school sweetheart.

It was devastating when she opened a registered letter outlining a malpractice case against her later that day. Allegedly, she had failed to communicate …

Malpractice may be negative, but its data can generate positive results

David L. Feldman, MD, MBA

Policy

June 27, 2022

When most health care professionals hear the word “malpractice,” they want to run the other way. This is understandable—but also a missed opportunity. We can leverage malpractice data to target and drive investment in patient safety efforts. Malpractice data shows us that good communication and teamwork are vital to preventing adverse events and malpractice claims—while dramatically improving working conditions and enhancing patient safety.

Malpractice data shows that communication-related factors contribute to …

Why a nurse should not go to jail

Barbara L. Olson, RN

Policy

May 21, 2022

I recently wrote a letter to the Davidson County, TN judge who will sentence RaDonda Vaught, a former Vanderbilt University Medical Center nurse convicted on two felony counts in the 2017 death of a patient. RaDonda faces up to 12 years in prison for her role in a complex chain of events that led to the death of Charlene Murphey. I shared my belief that incarcerating Ms. Vaught will not …

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Why a nurse should not go to jail

An example of medical-legal consulting

Armin Feldman, MD

Physician

May 11, 2022

Medical-legal consulting is a great way to use your medical training in a non-clinical field that helps people. Physicians all over the country are now doing medical-legal consulting as a rewarding part-time gig.

One service out of many we provide is to give our opinions regarding the causation of traumatic injuries. Some attorneys ask us to provide opinion letters regarding a particular injury caused in a work-related situation, a personal injury …

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An example of medical-legal consulting