Risk Management News and Education

Envision a scenario in which an adult brings a minor into your office. During check-in, it is revealed that the minor does not live with their parents but “lives with” the adult accompanying them. The adult in question could be an aunt, a grandparent or a cousin. Having a minor “live” with them does not mean for an afternoon, weekend or while the parents are on vacation. It means the parent is actually “absent” perhaps living in another state, country or maybe in jail; therefore, the minor lives with this person.

There will always be noncompliant patients. Physicians treating those patients need to foster a heightened sense of danger.

Handoffs occur any time there is a transfer of responsibility for a patient from one caregiver to another. Regulatory and accrediting bodies are well aware of the dangers of ineffective handoffs.

As a means of generating more revenue, physicians are becoming more creative with the types of programs and services they provide to patients and non-patients alike. The problem is some or all of these services may fall outside the scope of CAP’s medical liability coverage.

Smartphone technology has opened up a world where communication is quick and convenient and its capabilities have been fully embraced by physicians. With all these capabilities at your fingertips are you potentially violating HIPAA when texting? Here are the top ten things you can do to safeguard your practice today.

Download Form

Join CAP for a free lunch-hour webinar that will cover the essentials of informed consent to help you reduce the chances of a medical liability lawsuit, while effectively and respectfully communicating must-know information to your patients.

The Joint Commission estimates that 70 percent of sentinel events include communication breakdowns as one of the root causes of preventable patient injury. When we review our closed claims, we see, but for the communication failure, the patient injury would never have occurred.

We all know patients in California have a right to review their medical record and/or obtain a copy. It is also no surprise that healthcare providers are typically allowed to charge a fee for this service. However, with all the different rules and exceptions, copying fees can be confusing.