Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Patients just as likely to sue after apologies
Apologizing for a medical error in full and accepting responsibility may boost patients' perceptions of physicians but may not stop them from suing, according to simulations conducted at Johns Hopkins and reported in the Sept. 1 issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
Researchers created simulated scenarios of three medical mistakes: a year-long delay in noticing a malignant-looking lesion on a mammogram, a chemotherapy overdose 10 times the intended amount and a slow response to pages by a pediatric surgeon for a patient who eventually codes and is rushed to emergency surgery. Actors played out levels of physician apology (full, non-specific and none) and acceptance of responsibility (full or none). 200 adult viewers then evaluated the simulations and reported their impressions. Sample videos used in this study are online.
Viewers who thought that the doctor had fully apologized and taken responsibility gave the doctors much higher ratings (81% vs. 38%; P<0.05) and would refer the doctor (56% vs. 27%; P<0.05), but weren't significantly moved not to sue (43% vs. 47%).
What's not reported in this study was whether the doctor could avoid being named in the eventual lawsuit. ACP's news magazines have reported in the past on ways to apologize and how it affects malpractice litigation.
Labels: malpractice, patient communication
posted by Ryan DuBosar at
10:35 AM
ACP Internist hosted Grand Rounds on June 16, wrapping up the best of the medical blogosphere. Click here for the complete wrap-up.
Contact ACP Internist
Send comments to ACP Internist staff at acpinternist@acponline.org.
Previous Posts
- Mediterranean diet trumps low-fat diet for diabete...
- Medical news of the obvious
- ACP Master speaks his mind on H1N1 vaccines for he...
- A totally different vision of health reform
- Pinpointing the transition from human to doctor
- More health workers unsure about H1N1 vaccination
- Health workers, public may refuse H1N1 vaccines
- Concierge medicine keeps traditional practices afl...
- Medical News of the Obvious
- 2 years and counting...HPV vaccine controversy con...
Blog log
American Journal of Medicine
Also known as the Green Journal, the American Journal of Medicine publishes original clinical articles of interest to physicians in internal medicine and its subspecialities, both in academia and community-based practice.
Clinical Correlations
A collaborative medical blog started by Neil Shapiro, ACP Member, associate program director at New York University Medical Center's internal medicine residency program. Faculty, residents and students contribute case studies, mystery quizzes, news, commentary and more.
db's Medical Rants
Robert M. Centor, FACP, contributes short essays contemplating medicine and the health care system.
Everything Health
EverythingHealth is designed to address the rapid changes in science, medicine, health and healing in the 21st Century.
Getting Better with Dr. Val
Getting Better is the continuation of Dr. Val Jones' previous blog at Revolution Health. It is devoted to helping people understand health issues from a balanced, scientifically sound perspective.
HealthHombre
A roundup of health policy news drawn from a database of hundreds of Web sites.
Interact MD
Michael Benjamin, ACP member, doesn't accept industry money so he can create an independent, clinician-reviewed space on the Internet for physicians to report and comment on the medical news of the day.
Kevin, MD
The alter ego of Kevin Pho, ACP Member, is the closest thing to royalty in the medical blog world.
LSUHSC-S Medical Library Evidence Alert
Major guidelines, systematic reviews, meta-analyses and/or major reviews by national and international organizations.
PLoS Blog
The Public Library of Science's open access materials include a blog.
White Coat Rants
One of the most popular anonymous blogs written by a doctor.
1 Comments:
I can't fathom how apologizing, which may be the correct moral option, will reduce litigation. Patients decisions to sue their doctors often develop overtime, as the reflect upon the incident and are influenced by others. In addition, if the medical complication or negligent event causes a permanent injury, the the heartfelt apology will carry no weight. The medical malpractice system puts a conflict of interest before physicians who want to come clean with their patients. See www.MDWhistleblower.blogspot.com under Legal Quality category.
Post a Comment
<< Home