As per reports released by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), approximately 2,449 medical malpractice cases were disposed of by either the jury or bench trial in state courts of general jurisdiction across the United States in 2005. Roughly 99% of these trials were decided by a jury. Plaintiffs prevailed in less than a quarter of trials involving medical malpractice.
As per reports released by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), approximately 2,449 medical malpractice cases were disposed of by either the jury or bench trial in state courts of general jurisdiction across the United States in 2005. Roughly 99% of these trials were decided by a jury. Plaintiffs prevailed in less than a quarter of trials involving medical malpractice.
According to the Civil Justice Resource Group, 4.8% of physicians are responsible for half of the medical malpractice claims filed in the United States.
There are ways that you can avoid common medical malpractice claims, such as:
- Get the proper informed consent form – It is critical to have the proper informed consent document as it is the best defense against litigation. Ophthalmologists should be aware to inform their patient if there is any intent to use an off-label drug or have a doctor’s assistant perform any surgical tasks. Most elective procedures do carry a particular risk in litigation as patients may file a lawsuit if they are not satisfied with the outcome.
- Have a safe office environment – Many ophthalmology practices do not realize that there can be a cause for litigation before the patient even gets to see the doctor. Given that such practices see a high number of elderly patients as well as the visually impaired, they need to make sure that they have a safe office environment. This is a critical element in their risk management procedures. They need to make sure they do everything in their power to lower the risk of accidents and emergency situations.
- Patient abandonment – A serious complication that arises when patients miss appointments, are non-compliant and ignore bills is that doctors tend to forget about them. And then two years later, they are sued for patient abandonment. This is unfair, but a fact of medical practice. There is a protocol for terminating a doctor/patient relationship and avoiding patient abandonment charges. All ophthalmologists should make sure that they follow this protocol to avoid a malpractice action against them.
- Avoid surgical errors – Though surgical errors are relatively rare, there are cases of surgical errors such as amputating the wrong leg. Mandatory surgical checklists have been enforced and this has led to a significant decrease in medical errors. Ophthalmologists should make sure that they have this checklist before performing a procedure such as cataract surgery, etc. on a patient. Such checklists are essential for efficiency, consistency, and most importantly, safety.
If you or somebody you know has been injured due to the negligence of an ophthalmologist or any other physician, you should immediately seek the expertise of a reliable medical malpractice attorney at Rosenberg, Minc, Falloff, & Wolff of RMFW Law at 212-344-1000.
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