Healthcare Risk Management
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Court Orders New Trial After Finding Hospital’s Expert Lacked Necessary Qualifications
This case shows how expert testimony plays a crucial role in establishing the cause of injuries and determining liability in medical malpractice litigation. It also highlights the importance of selecting an expert who is not only qualified to offer an opinion on general causation, but one who is qualified to offer an opinion on specific causation. The difference between the two is the difference between a favorable verdict and a retrial.
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Employee Curiosity Sometimes Overcomes HIPAA Training
Recently, a hospital in Washington was fined $240,000 in a settlement with the Office for Civil Rights over allegations that 23 security guards snooped in the medical records of 419 patients — a reminder that this pernicious type of HIPAA violation is difficult to eliminate.
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Plan Now for Eventual HIPAA Changes
HHS has been expected to finalize proposed modifications to HIPAA in 2023, but it now appears that will not happen until December 2024 — or later. Whenever the changes come, covered entities will need to review their compliance policies and update them within 180 days of final rulemaking.
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Patient Advocates Launch National Diabetes Treatment Recognition Program
Hospitals can be evaluated based on their care for patients with diabetes during admission, stay, and discharge.
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Researchers Seek to Standardize Patient Handoff Protocols
Ensuring a smooth and safe transition to the next step of the care continuum is vital to protecting patients.
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Medical Malpractice Action Failed When Expert Testimony Did Not Comply with Statute
This ruling is a reminder of the crucial importance of consulting with counsel and investigating statutory requirements when selecting an expert witness who is not in the same profession as the defendant.
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Failure to Inspect Patient After Cesarean Section Leads to Cardiac Arrests and Hysterectomy, $8 Million Award
This case serves as a stark reminder to medical professionals about the critical importance of closely monitoring patients after surgery and preparing to intervene promptly if complications arise. The incident underscores the significance of knowing the risks and potential complications associated with emergency cesarean sections.
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Study Shows Importance of Effective Medication Reconciliation
A recent study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston illustrates some of the best tactics hospitals can use for improving medication reconciliation. The first lesson from the study is the importance of taking the best possible medication history in the ED before the patient is admitted.
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Patient Objections to Caregivers Create Difficult Situations
Healthcare organizations could find themselves in a difficult position if a patient or family member refuses care from a clinician because of race, sex, or sexual orientation. If the situation arises, the law is clear even if following it will make the patient or family upset.
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National Patient Safety Board Could Be Implemented
A bill in Congress could create a patient safety board modeled after the successful safety efforts in transportation. The bill would create a National Patient Safety Board that would do for the healthcare industry what the National Transportation Safety Board and Commercial Aviation Safety Team have done to improve safety for those fields for more than 25 years.