As a doctor, one of the worst strings of words you can hear is “medical malpractice suit.” But how can you protect yourself from ever having to hear them? Aside from the obvious, be a perfect doctor and heal everyone who comes into your office, the lines might be a little blurred. A few things you can do to make sure you aren’t slammed with a medical malpractice suit are:
- Document everything and make sure it is contemporaneous, accurate, truthful and appropriate. You must document the date and time as you are administering treatment, as well as the treatment that is being administered. Everything you document must be truthful. If not, that will open your door to a malpractice suit or a lawsuit from the insurance company. Also make sure that all of your patient notes are appropriate and are written with the assumption that anyone may read them one day.
- Compliance with policies and procedures is crucial. Follow the rules of your practice meticulously. If there are any issues with procedures that may make you and your practice susceptible to lawsuits. It is the responsibility of everyone in the office to ensure that each employee is compliant and not doing anything that could put them at risk.
- Insurance is a must when it comes to practicing medicine. Not only can insurance give you an extra layer of protection but it is essential in the off chance things go a-ry. Lawsuits are so expensive that a doctor cannot afford not to have insurance.
In the end, prevention and ongoing protection are what is going to keep you out of medical malpractice risk. So make sure to practice due diligence and document all of your work for each of your patients. No one is perfect and mistakes happen; being prepared for worst case scenarios through medical malpractice insurance is the only way to keep ahead of the lawsuit curve.
Lauren Ray
Lauren covers a variety of legal topics, including trusts, estates, car accident, and personal injury law.