August 1, 2013
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A growing number of lawsuits involve poor communication — multiple MDs involved
It's an increasingly common scenario in a malpractice suit: A primary care physician refers a patient to a specialist, and each assumes the other is communicating the need for follow-up or further testing. -
MD got dismissed due to this documentation
The MRI result and response fell through the cracks, she says, and the documentation showed a path directly to the neurosurgeon. -
Suit alleged failure to follow up on result
After a hospitalized patient was discharged, an abnormal lab result was sent to her primary care provider. That provider apparently filed the lab result in the patient's chart without recognizing the abnormality. -
Radiology misreads are tough to defend
Radiology errors are difficult to address in medical malpractice claims because at that point in time, everyone, including the jury, knows the patient's injury. -
When a radiology finding is missed, make case defensible
Did a radiologist contact the ordering physician about a finding? If so, it is important for the radiologist to document why the call was made, when the conversation with the ordering physician occurred, and the substance of any conversation had. -
Patient can't hear you? Legal risks abound
If a hearing-impaired patient asked you for a sign language interpreter, would you readily agree or ask that the patient communicate with written notes instead? -
Residents make more errors when they work shorter shifts
While many believe that legal risks would be reduced as a result of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's reduction in resident shift lengths from 30 to 16 hours, two recent studies suggest that the opposite is true. -
Will med/mal suit be filed? Here's how attorneys decide
Did the physician act as a reasonably careful professional? If not, did the failure to act in this manner cause a significant injury -
Consent refused? Take appropriate action
In 2002, a police officer took custody of a 5-week-old febrile infant girl after her parents refused to consent to a spinal tap to rule out meningitis. -
Physician Legal Review & Commentary: 16-year-old male awarded $450,000 for failure to diagnose appendicitis 6 days later, primary care doctor finds infection
A 16-year-old male was awarded $450,000 for his doctor's failure to diagnose appendicitis before the appendix ruptured. -
Physician Legal Review & Commentary: Case involved controversial procedure: manipulation under anesthesia
A man and his two daughters were awarded $38.6 million against two doctors for their negligence in conducting a controversial procedure under anesthesia on the patient.