Risk Management News and Education

California law provides that any adult patient and any minor patient authorized by law to consent to medical treatment, is entitled to inspect and request a copy of their medical record upon written request to the healthcare provider and payment of reasonable costs to make the record available.  (California Health and Safety Code Section 123110)

Medical malpractice lawsuits are no longer based solely on medical errors or missed treatments. Many of these cases are becoming more about the experience of the patient: how he or she feels, and whether he or she felt they were treated fairly or felt mistreated. Here are some tips to mitigate risk and strengthen the patient experience.

To pursue a lawsuit for medical malpractice, it is not enough for a plaintiff to demonstrate that a defendant did not meet the standard of care in treating a patient and that a patient suffered a  harm. A crucial component must bridge the two — the professional breach must have caused the harm.

Medication administration is commonly the responsibility of medical assistants (MAs) in many California medical offices and clinic settings. While MAs play a vital role in carrying out a variety of routine tasks that keep your office running smoothly, they may also represent an underappreciated source of risk for your practice.

Notwithstanding the usual suspects that hinder electronic medical record implementation — initial costs, interoperability problems, training burdens, and altered physician-patient dynamics — there’s also the risk of a pure system malfunction. In a malpractice suit after an admitted malfunction, a physician’s actions will still be scrutinized.

You may have already read about CAPAdvantage, our suite of no-cost and discounted practice management programs. Leveraging the buying power of your 12,000 member-strong cooperative, all programs are administered by highly reputable, CAP-vetted vendors. But can these programs really save your practice time, money, and aggravation?

According to a new report on sexual harassment released by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, data for fiscal year 2018 shows a more than 50 percent increase in sexual harassment lawsuits filed by the agency, and a more than 12 percent increase in the number of charges it received over fiscal year 2017.

The goal of CAP’s Risk Management and Patient Safety Department is to prevent patient injury, prevent adverse events, and reduce claims by educating physicians to utilize risk strategies across the continuum of care.

CAP members face a variety of challenges in their medical practice in addition to lawsuits by patients. CAP members may also encounter Medical Board inquiries, regulatory investigations or complaints about Medicare/Medicaid fraud or abuse, and even discrimination lawsuits brought by former or current employees.

If there is a list somewhere of phrases that will spur disagreement among physicians, certainly “curbside consult” would be included. One case shows how easy access to electronic health records can affect how involved a physician will be perceived in a particular case. A young mother was on hospital premises with her son, who was being treated for Mast Cell Activation Syndrome. The mother began to experience acute illness and self-injected two doses of epinephrine, which she carried because of her own history of anaphylaxis.