Most lawsuits against doctors are over bad outcomes, not malpractice

From South Carolina:

Many physicians acknowledge that their profession has not done enough to reduce medical errors. They argue, correctly, that lawsuits are not the best way to solve the problem: Most lawsuits against doctors are over bad outcomes, not malpractice; and most cases of actual malpractice don’t result in lawsuits, or in any other punitive action. But simply supporting new procedures aimed at systemic errors or wishing the lawsuits would go away isn’t a sufficient answer to the problem. As long as the state operates a self-policing system for physicians, its primary goal should be to discipline that tiny minority of doctors whose carelessness or incompetence truly poses a risk to patients.

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"The best thing I have ever done"

Anecdotal evidence about malpractice driving physician movement from the Yale alumni mag (via pointoflaw.com):

If people tell you tort reform isn't important, don't believe them. The
contrast between practicing in a highly litigious area versus a low one is
incredible. While I knew it was taking a toll on my life and affecting my
practice style, I had no idea how much until I got out here. Using my clinical
judgment without the threat of second-guessing and Monday-morning quarterbacking
not only improves care, but also drastically cuts down on CYA testing. It's
great to be a doctor rather than a fearful technician wondering from where the
next hit is coming. ...

There are 2 other similar stories

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Medical Courts

I'm a little late in getting to this, but an interesting debate is taking place at Legal Affairs magazine:

George W. Bush is pushing an aggressive agenda for reforming medical malpractice law, with a focus on capping the amount of damages patients can be awarded if their doctors harm them. But some advocates suggest a completely different reform: "health courts." These jury-less courts would deal only with medical claims and be administered by trained healthcare professionals. This, supporters argue, might improve healthcare by providing quicker resolution to malpractice suits and limiting frivolous claims.

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Malpractice case payouts jump in Pennsylvania

The beat goes on in Pennsylvania...

Insurance companies and other underwriters in Pennsylvania reported a steep jump last year in payments for malpractice claims against physicians, according to a federal agency.

In 2004, insurers reported paying out $448 million, a 13.5 percent jump from $394.5 million reported in 2003, according to the U.S. Health Resources & Services Administration. The 2004 figure broke the previous record, which had been set in 2001.

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Medical review panel

From Wyoming, where voters recently authorized the creation of a review panel to try and keep frivolous malpractice lawsuits out of the courts in the first place:

The medical review panel legislation was introduced to screen
medical malpractice lawsuits in the hopes of eliminating frivolous suits before
they rack up costs that contribute to high medical malpractice insurance
premiums. Some say these premiums are driving doctors out of practice in
Wyoming.

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Watch out Vets...

...you're next. From the USA Today:

It's a typical medical malpractice case - except in this 3-year-old dispute, the patient was a sheepdog named Lucky.

Barry Silver, the attorney for Lucky's owners, says that when the case goes to trial this year in Broward County, Fla., he intends to ask jurors to award hundreds of thousands of dollars to the dog's owners, Adam Riff and his mother, Ellen.

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The largest judgment in favor of a pet owner has been $39,000, which a jury in Orange County, Calif., awarded last year to Marc Bluestone.

His mutt, Shane, died of liver failure after a misdiagnosis. In a verdict that is being appealed by the vet, the jury awarded Bluestone $30,000 for the dog's "unique value" to his owner, and $9,000 for vet bills.

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Fighting back against frivolous lawsuits

From Ohio:

Dr. Zev Maycon has found his name attached to four malpractice lawsuits in the
past three years.

In each case, he was dropped from the suits before they went to trial. But with the last one, he'd had enough. He asked the judge to sanction the plaintiff's attorney for filing a frivolous lawsuit against him in Stark County Common Pleas Court.
Visiting Judge Roger G. Lile agreed with Maycon, finding ``frivolous conduct'' by the attorney, Catherine Little, and ordering her to pay him $6,000.

``Basically, they had no real case against me,'' said Maycon, a Canton gastroenterologist. ``The expert witness they had had no criticism of me.... When I couldn't get dropped from the lawsuit and was essentially extorted, I said, `This has to stop. This is wrong.' ''

An interesting statistic buried in the article:

Nationwide, slightly more than six out of every 10 malpractice suits filed are
either dropped or dismissed, according to the Physician Insurers Association of
America. More than three in 10 are settled before trial. Fewer than one in 10
makes it to trial, and, of those, patients prevail in only one in five cases.

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