Risk Management Publications

positive and trusting relationship with your patient fosters honest conversations, shared decision-making, improved health outcomes, increased loyalty, and fewer lawsuits.

In this age of continuous real-time and on-demand media, how do you know whether your patients are also using their devices to record their office visit without your knowledge or consent? Should patients be allowed to record these visits?

Most physicians know the basic dos and don’ts of accurately documenting notes in a patient’s medical record. However, problems often arise when documenting a disagreement with the findings of another provider, or when using descriptive language about the patient. The wrong choice of words may be perceived as biased or disrespectful.

When Governor Gavin Newsom signed California Assembly Bill 35 (AB 35) into law on May 23, 2022, it opened the door for a likely tremendous surge of medical malpractice litigation—with increasing frequency and cost—after it goes into effect on January 1, 2023.

We know you always have your patients’ best interests at heart. But have you thought about the possibility that unconscious biases against certain genders, ethnicities, or cultures may be impacting your care? A bias is the negative evaluation of one group and its members relative to another. Implicit or unconscious bias does not require an individual to be aware of their actions or beliefs.

One of the most important methods of mortality surveillance is through monitoring causes of death as reported on death certificates. Death certificates are registered for every death occurring in the United States, which helps provide a complete picture of mortality trends and data nationwide.

In recent healthcare incidents and violent attacks that have swept the country, victims and their families have been left with unanswered questions as investigators attempt to piece together clues from the deceased suspects’ social media posts, letters, and/or manifestos and determine the motives and patterns around their fatal and horrific actions.

As an epidemic of controlled substance abuse continues to sweep the nation, numerous healthcare providers have been impacted by theft of their United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) number. A recent survey revealed that approximately 10% of prescribers reported having their DEA number stolen or compromised

What is the appropriate time frame for completing medical record documentation in the office setting? According to Medicare, “the service should be documented during, or as soon as practicable after it is provided, in order to maintain an accurate medical record.”

Have you ever heard the colloquialism “Don’t count your chickens before they’ve hatched"? Of course, you have. Yet, it seems in healthcare we frequently do so. This is especially true in the immediate postoperative period.