Medical Malpractice

by Anderson, Richard E.

• ISBN13: 9781588293893
• ISBN10: 1588293890
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781592598458
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-11-01
• Publisher: Humana Pr Inc

Summary

A comprehensive presentation of the origin, nature, and ramifications of the medical malpractice litigation crisis, as well as possible solutions and alternatives to the current troubled system. The authors focus on the clinical face of litigation from the perspective of the practicing physician in a variety of specialties, ranging from family and emergency medicine to anesthesiology, obstetrics, gynecology, and plastic surgery. Special consideration is given to breast cancer and Pap smear litigation, risk management for the family physician, the emerging significance of e-medicine, and the importance of effective patient communication. Additional legal chapters examine the litigation process itself, offering insight into winning medical malpractice lawsuits, the role of the physician as expert witness or defendant, the process of discovery and deposition, and how a plaintiff's attorney views risk reduction. For public policy debate, the authors spell out the case for legal reform, suggest changes in medical-legal jurisprudence that can be of immediate benefit, and reflect on the broader problems of our entire health care system and its interface with law and public policy.

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
Introduction	ix
Contributors	xix
Part I. Insurance
Insuring the Practice of Medicine	3	(8)
Mark Gorney
Richard E. Anderson
Part II. Legal
What Every Doctor Should Know About Litigation: A Primer on How to Win Medical Malpractice Lawsuits	11	(24)
Fred J. Hiestand
Risk Reduction From a Plaintiff Attorney's Perspective	35	(6)
David Wm. Horan
The Physician As a Witness	41	(12)
Joel A. Mattison
The Judicial Process: Discovery and Deposition	53	(12)
Jonathan I. Epstein
Part III. The Clinical Face of Litigation
Communication and Patient Safety	65	(10)
Mark Gorney
E-Medicine in the Physician's Office	75	(14)
Edward Fotsch
Risk Management for the Family Physician	89	(12)
Malcolm H. Weiss
Emergency Medicine	101	(14)
Michael Jay Bresler
Anesthesiology	115	(24)
Ann S. Lofsky
Malpractice and Medical Practice: Obstetrics and Gynecology	139	(14)
Jack M. Schneider
Breast Cancer Litigation	153	(14)
Richard E. Anderson
David B. Troxel
Pap Smear Litigation	167	(14)
David B. Troxel
Medical Liability in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery	181	(20)
Mark Gorney
Part IV. Legal Reform and Health Care
The Case for Legal Reform	201	(26)
Richard E. Anderson
Health Policy Review: Medical Malpractice	227	(20)
David M. Studdert
Michelle M. Mello
Troyen A. Brennan
New Directions in Medical Liability Reform	247	(32)
William M. Sage
Index	279