Defending Medical Malpractice

Eldon L. Boisseau

The Law Offices Of Eldon L. Boisseau

Wichita, Kansas

Overland Park, Kansas

1. What can be done to protect yourself from medical malpractice?

1. Do a good job.

2. Take care of your patient.

3. Care about their care.

4. Develop good relationships with patient.

5. Keep up on the medicine involved.

6. Do your charting and keep it current.

7. Take whatever time is necessary to do a good job.

What can be done to protect yourself from Medical Malpractice, continued

8. Be mindful of the on call situation & when to transfer the patient

9. Do not get too busy.10. If you are doing a lot of one thing, you are

probably doing something wrong.11. Know the people upon whom you are

relying for backup & for professional opinion.

12. Determine when to consult on a particular problem or unusual situation.

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate?

1. Stages of the lawsuit A. Pleading

B. Discovery

C. Pre-trial

D. Trial

E. Appeal

F. Final concerns

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

2. Acquire records.3. Research medications involved.4. Meet & evaluate the doctor.5. Figure out what is going on with the

plaintiff in the case.6. Study the records & look for the

discrepancies.7. Develop a list of who might be a

consultant or an expert on this condition.

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

8. Prepare the doctor for the deposition.A. What is a deposition?

B. What needs to be done for the deposition?

C. What are your concerns about the deposition?

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

9. Develop any comparative fault on the part of the plaintiff.A. Failure to follow medical advice.

B. Poor history given.

C. Bad genes.

D. Disease or condition that is self-inflicted.

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

10. Determine the standard of care.

11. Find experts in the field who can defend the action & know the standard of care.A. Which experts do you want?

1) Local

2) Non-local & have published on the topic at hand.

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

B. What is the standard of care?

1) Board certified.

2) Non-boarded & not in large metropolitan area.

3) Impact of HMO.

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

12.Informed consent.

13.Complications

14.Unexplainable events.

2. What we do to defend the case and how do the two relate, continued?

15.Trial of caseA. How to dress.B. What demeanor to

exhibit.C. How to testify.D. What are the

questions to be asked & answers to be given.

E. Develop themes.F. Pick the jury.G. Develop the

experts.H. Literature to be

used.I. Cross exam of the

plaintiffs.

3. Stress

1. What is going on?

2. What does this mean for my professional life?

3. What does this mean for liability insurance?

4. What will this mean when reported to the federal government?

5. What is the impact on my practice?

6. What is the impact on my family?

4. What About Insurance and Estate Planning?

1. Type & amount of insurance

2. Tort reform

3. Estate planning

4. What companies to use & not, there is a difference.

5. The idea that the care is all about cash flow.