Patient who had been prescribed sulfa antibiotic drug to treat prostatitis, and who suffered seizure after taking drug, brought medical malpractice action against physician in which he asserted negligence and informed consent claims. The District Court, directed verdict for physician on informed consent claim, and entered judgment on jury verdict for physician on negligence claim. Patient appea...

Managed care organizations (MCOs), as insurance entities, should be liable under contract for inappropriate denial of coverage, whereas treatment errors should be conventional malpractice claims against physicians. Most MCOs are loose networks of independent practices that lack the requisite information or technology to improve care. Holding such MCOs vicariously liable for their physicians’ ne...

course, arising out of the Workmen's Compensation Act, but sometimes under common law as well ; and therefore a review of those decisions which have helped to define what an accident is may not be out of place at a medical meeting. It is curious that neither of the Workmen's Compensation Acts contained this definition, so that the meaning of the term has tended to vary case by case. Prior to th...

The system of tort liability for medical malpractice is frequently criticized for poorly performing its theoretical functions of compensating injured patients, deterring negligence, and dispensing corrective justice. Working from an actual malpractice case involving serious injury but no apparent negligence, the authors explore these criticisms from the perspectives of both the plaintiff-patien...

1 Brennan TA, Leape LL, Laird NM, Herbert L, Localio R, Lawthers AG, et al. Results of the Harvard medical practice study I. Incidence of adverse events and negligence in hospitalized patients. N Engl J Med 1991;324:370-6. 2 Laurance J. Doctors warned on care of patients. Independent 1998 May 20:5. 3 General Medical Council. Good medical practice. London: GMC, 1998. 4 Leape L. Error in medicine...

erative neurologic injury, infection, hemorrhage, hematoma, and drug-related side effects. Complications can be resolved without any serious problems if the cause is detected early and adequate treatment provided. In this case, it is rare for the medical staff to take legal responsibilities. However, in cases of malpractice, civil and criminal penalties are unavoidable if negligence of the medi...

IN MEDICINE The Harvard Medical Practice Study in the State of New York (1990) pointed out that 3.7% of a sample of 30195 hospitalized patients suffered an adverse event (AE) resulting in measurable disability. Physician experts reviewed 1133 AEs defined as unintended injuries caused by medical management. The AEs were classified as preventable, unpreventable and potentially preventable (i.e. c...