Malpractice Issues

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“When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad. That's my religion”. Abraham Lincoln once said this and he said this in the sense that everyone is vulnerable to doing wrong by accident or on purpose. Doctor is considered as great people who are able to use their skills to care for patients; nonetheless, they can deviate from the good and become bad as well. In response to this malpractice, laws are there to protect patients from being harmed by the practice of a doctor. Giving the advantage of suing the doctor for malpractice creates a functioning barrier that affects the performance of a doctor. Malpractice laws create fear in the physician that it hinders them from performing in their maximum capacity. Although malpractice laws exist to protect the patient and perfect the medical practice of a doctor, it leads the doctors to practice defensive medicine.

Malpractice laws are important for the protection of a patient. It is essential that these laws exist so that doctors are very cautious in their practice. Every day we hear many stories about doctors being sued for malpractice. Malpractice is “bad practice” performed by the doctor, which in some way or another, harms the patient. Malpractice is also known as negligence, which is when a doctor or health professional makes a mistake in their practice that, could have been prevented and this harms the patient who is receiving the care (Kieserman). In order for a malpractice to occur, there are five factors involved. First, an accident occurs due to the neglect of a doctor. Secondly, the incident was avoidable, but due to carelessness, it was not prevented. Thirdly, the physician violated their duty of care. For example, in a case where the patient was feeling sick,...

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Kieserman, Robert. Class Lecture. Intro to Health Services. Arcadia University, Glenside, PA.

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Manner, Paul A. "Practicing Defensive Medicine-Not Good for Patients or Physicians."

Practicing Defensive Medicine - Not Good for Patients or Physicians. American

Association of Orthopedic Surgeons, Jan.-Feb. 2007. Web. 03 Apr. 2012.

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Studdert DM, Mello MM, Sage WM, et al. Defensive medicine among high risk specialist

Physicians in a volatile malpractice environment. JAMA. 2005;293(21):2609-2617.

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Watts, Geoff. "Bad Medicine." New Scientist 184.2470 (2004): 38-41. Academic Search

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