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Jul 28, 2009 06:00 PM | 5
Many doctors have a hard time owning up to errors, in part due to fears of being sued over malpractice claims and the consequent increase in malpractice insurance premiums.
However, the University of Michigan Health System’s (UMHS) approach, acknowledging mistakes and compensating patients up front, has reduced the number of malpractice cases and subsequent costs, according to the Associated Press.
In 2004, the university implemented a transparency concept in which the hospital admits mistakes, not only addressing patients’ concerns but also allowing doctors the freedom to learn from their mistakes.
UMHS malpractice claims dropped from 121 in 2001 to 61 in 2006, two years after implementation of the policy, Richard Boothman, the system’s chief risk officer, told the AP.
Boothman and his colleagues, in a 2009 Journal of Health & Life Sciences Law article, state that people want to be informed of the bad news. When doctors will not disclose information regarding what is wrong, patients begin seeking legal counsel.
David Studdert, a law and public health expert at Harvard, is more reserved about this open approach, telling the wire service that only about 17 percent of people severely hurt by mistakes in U.S. hospitals seek compensation.
“Many people do not sue, because they don’t discover they are victims of malpractice,” Studdert told the AP, going on to suggest that disclosure might cause U.S. malpractice costs to rise even higher than the current $5.8 billion per year.
Image of doctor and patients by deanm1974 via iStockphoto
Tags:
malpractice,
insurance,
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5 Comments
Add CommentWHAT AN AMAZING CONCEPT!!!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thislet us be honest, up front and human in our capabilities and compassion... Own you mistakes and do what you can to make reparations when needed. The would would be a much safer, happier, less litigious and healthier place if we all (large institutions and corporations especially) took a page from this playbook.
Oops... sorry for the typos. I failed to proof my first comment.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisExcellent idea!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this'Nuff said.
It would be nice if we could be open and honest. But the malpractice contracts physicians sign often include a clause stating that the insurer would not cover malpractice if the physician deliberately committed any action that would compromise their defense in a malpractice suit. It would be hard to defend a case when the physician admitted culpability. So in admitted a mistake leading to malpractice, the doctor may find himself with no malpractice insurance to pay any damages.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf this becomes the norm then doctors better start looking for good medical <a href="http://www.hcpnational.com/healthcare/medical-malpractice.php">malpractice insurance</a>. The price of health care would probably rise as well.
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