Law

On Tort Reform: Treating the Symptoms

Large pain and suffering awards in medical malpractice suits have contributed to increased insurance costs, which have in turn increased the patient's costs and reduced the availability of care. In order to reduce the costs of insurance, the medical profession asks for a limit on the amount that can be awarded for pain and suffering. This may reduce insurance costs. It may reduce the patient's costs. It may increase the availability of care. But these are only symptoms. The disease is malpractice.

And what is malpractice? Catastrophic mistakes:

Later in the debate, however, Rep. Joseph M. Hoeffel III (D-Pa.) cited the case of Linda McDougall, who underwent an unnecessary double mastectomy after a hospital mixed up her lab results. "The good news is Linda McDougall doesn't have breast cancer," Hoeffel said. "The bad news is she doesn't have breasts any more." [The Washington Post]

Oops.

The causes for mistakes can be identified and remedied, and some work has been done in that area: To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System, Kohn, et al. (2000).

Yet to my feeble mind it seems quite simple: tired, overworked staff make catastrophic mistakes. Why is a lack of sleep common in the medical professions?

Then, of course, there are those who shouldn't practice medicine at all.

12:58:20 PM # Google It!
categories: Law