Healthcare Risk Management – June 1, 2004
June 1, 2004
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Liability waivers can be effective in some cases, but they’re no panacea
Youre fed up with being dragged into every lawsuit that has even the slightest connection to your institution, so you daydream about having patients just sign a waiver up front promising to never sue you for anything. Nice fantasy, but those things dont really hold up in court, do they? -
Check informed consent before trying waiver
A health care attorney cautions that you should not rush to use liability waivers until you have confirmed that your informed consent processes are the best they can be. -
Pony rides definitely need waiver of liability
Liability waivers are best used for voluntary activities or when patients refuse your clinicians advice, says Jeffrey Driver, JD, MBA, chief risk officer with Stanford (CA) University Medical Center and president of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management in Chicago. He suggests these categories. -
Defamation lawsuits may chill reporting of docs
A closely watched case in Connecticut has some observers worried that health care providers will be discouraged from reporting information about physicians to state boards, other monitoring groups, and even a hospitals internal peer review system. -
Phone advice could be major liability risk
The risk of giving advice to patients by phone should be well known to risk managers, and most have educated staff about what not to say to patients with questions. Add in the automated answering systems that urge patients to call 911 for emergencies, and you should be well covered in this area, right? Not necessarily. -
Union files OSHA complaint about needlestick safety
Citing serious concerns about needle safety at Connecticuts largest hospital, a union representing hospital service workers has filed a formal complaint with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in Washington, DC. -
Failure to diagnose cancer yields $8 million verdict
A Dallas County, TX, jury has awarded an $8 million verdict to a woman and her husband after a group of doctors and other medical professionals failed to diagnose the womans breast cancer for more than a year after she discovered a lump in her breast. -
ISMP warns of critical issue with drug mix-up
The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) in Huntington Valley, PA, has issued a special alert about lookalike packaging of two drugs that can lead to serious adverse events. -
Reader Question: There are exceptions to EMTALA during disasters
Question: Ive heard that the final Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act states that the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will not sanction hospitals for inappropriate transfers during a national emergency if the hospital is the area affected by the emergency. Does a large-scale disaster in our community, such as an airliner crash, qualify? -
Liability crisis threatens health care access
A poll released in March by the Health Coalition on Liability and Access reveals that Americans believe a growing crisis in health care liability is pushing health care costs up and forcing good doctors out of medical practice. -
Legal Review & Commentary: Failure to treat asthmatic patient results in brain damage: $5 million NY verdict
A woman having an asthma attack presented at the emergency department. After she was hospitalized for three days, her daughter came to visit and found her non-responsive and blue. The patient was resuscitated; however, she was left brain damaged. The patients daughter brought suit against the hospital and attending physician. The jury returned a $5 million verdict in favor of the plaintiff. -
Legal Review & Commentary: Alleged assault not treated: Patient wins $300K verdict
A patient alleged that an equipment technician sexually assaulted her. After reporting the situation to several nurses, the patient was given medication to calm her, and she was discharged quickly thereafter. A Texas jury awarded the patient $300,000 based on the hospitals failure to provide treatment.