Avoiding Medical Malpractice Involvement Medical malpractice, or lawsuits filed against medical personnel, is more common than most people realize. 85% of medical lawsuits involve doctors, but on occasion a hospital or a medical practice may be involved. Witness As a nurse, there is always a chance that you could be called as a witness in the case of a lawsuit. You could be subpoenaed by the defense or prosecution, depending on needs, and what they may feel you can offer. This is never a good position to be in, you will certainly not score points with an employer or coworkers, even if you are forced to testify,there is going to be some resentment. If called to speak, you will be under oath, and you need to be honest, which will hurt or help your coworker and employer. Either way, it will be an uncomfortable situation, one that you would be much better avoiding. Statistics and Facts This is not to imply there is never a time that a lawsuit is not justified, however, there are many lawsuits that are generated and appear to be a waste of everyone's time. Lawsuits, whether justified of not ruin lives. A lawsuit can ruin a reputation and even end a career, and it is estimated that ž ‘s of all lawsuits has no factual basis. So why are there so many lawsuits in the medical community if more than half have no backing, and will most likely lose in court? It narrows down to money. Medical malpractice insurance companies would often rather settle and end the crisis that to fight it. The result is the lawyer and a person suing to get a substantial sum of funds, and agree to drop the suit. Once a malpractice suit has been filed, the person or person(s) being sued will most likely see an end to their career, regardless of the outcome. Related: How to Perfect your Nursing Resume Avoiding Involvement Obviously, the best option is to not be involved in any lawsuit activity. You have a moral and ethical obligation to be honest and protect the patients, so in the event you observe something that could potentially harm a patient, it should be brought to the attention of your supervisor, or if you are uncomfortable doing that, human resources will respect your confidentiality. There is no actual way to avoid involvement if you are in the right place at
the right time. There are some things you can do to lessen the odds you would be summoned. -
Never discuss coworkers or doctors in a negative or questionable means, with coworkers. If you see something that needs to be reported, make sure it is to the appropriate person. Avoid discussing it with anyone else.
Make sure you follow rules and protocol; you may set a positive example for someone else. If it is not something related to you, remove yourself from the equation. -
If called to provide testimony, stick to the facts alone, and make answers short and to the point. Answer only what is directly asked of you.
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Don't answer if someone verbally asked you to testify for the prosecutor, however if summoned, you have no choice. Sometimes just ignoring the verbal request will make it appear that you would not be a good witness.
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Keep a low profile when it comes to problems at work, and avoid being associated with any coworkers that are considered gossipers.
Related: Common Intestinal Disorders You can't always avoid being caught in a situation that involves a medical malpractice suit, however you can lower the risk of being summoned. A nurse that practiced at a large hospital was working with one of her favorite doctors in the surgical unit. She always enjoyed kidding with him and teasing about staying out late at night on his many dates. She took a break and while in the cafeteria, continued to offer friendly and playful joking when the doctor came in for a bite. Later that day the doctor operated on a patient that experienced unforeseen complications. There was nothing the doctor could have done that would have prevented the incident, which led to an extra long recovery for the patient. The nurse that was so fond of the doctor was called to testify for the plaintiff. The plaintiff had family members in the cafeteria the day nurse was kidding with the doctor about his lack of sleep. The doctor’s insurance company settled for a large amount, and of course his career as he knew it was over. The nurse that was at the center of the talk felt terrible, as she never intended for anything negative to occur from her kidding. It was a mistake, however one
that ruined lives. Always think about what is being said. You never want to be placed in a predicament such as this. Related: Skilled Registered Nurse, Certified Hospice Nurse and Certified Legal Nurse Consultant Lucinda Perkins, RN, will be Spotlighted in the Worldwide Leaders in Healthcare Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter