Medical malpractice claims can be costly and damage your institution’s reputation. They can use up resources or negatively affect relationships with partner organizations.
Addressing these claims could be crucial to maintaining patient trust. If you want to keep a good reputation within your field, your institution should take measures to prevent medical errors and avoid reports of negligence.
Protect your organization from medical malpractice claims
A lawsuit can be one of the worst nightmares of medical professionals. Fortunately, you may reduce this risk by implementing the following measures:
- Respond promptly to medical emergencies: Doctors should immediately respond to emergencies and document them adequately. Notes should include the response time to the emergency and the patient’s vital signs.
- Visit your patients: Some malpractice cases arise from complaints involving doctors who did not take the time to see patients. If the injured decide to take legal action, a physician who directly interacted with them may be easier to defend in court.
- Check medical test results and interpret them properly: Medical assistants, nurses or mid-level healthcare providers are not the ones who should be evaluating a patient’s test results. Interpreting the data should be the physician’s duty and responsibility.
- If a treatment plan fails, refer patients to specialists: If a sick person fails to respond to a doctor’s treatment plan, the physician may have to re-evaluate their symptoms and refer them to a specialist. With the help of another doctor, the patient may get more suitable care with better results.
- Learn and follow medical community standards: Physicians should learn, understand and adhere to the standards set by the medical industry.
These steps are only some practices you may consider for improving medical care standards, which can help protect you against legal issues. You can implement other processes that may suit the unique needs of your facility.
Provide excellent medical care and avoid lawsuits
An effective way to avoid potential claims is to give patients the care and services they need appropriately. With this mindset, you and other healthcare providers within your network can continue helping the sick and the injured while reducing the risk of lawsuits.