By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    medicare part d benefits
    Everything that You Need to Know About Medicare Part D
    August 15, 2022
    Best Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter
    Best Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter
    November 15, 2022
    back pain issues
    Ways to Treat Constant Back Pain
    August 21, 2023
    Latest News
    How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
    July 17, 2025
    Beyond Nutrition: Everyday Foods That Support Whole-Body Health
    June 15, 2025
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    More On Wellness Programs To Improve Health and Reduce Costs
    January 25, 2012
    Privatizing Social Security and Medicare: Who Can Defuse Political Dynamite?
    June 12, 2011
    Study: Risk of Death in Elderly Patients with Dementia Doubled with Some Antipsychotic Medications
    February 26, 2012
    Latest News
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
    How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
    July 17, 2025
    How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
    July 17, 2025
    Let Your Lawyer Handle the Work Before You Pay Medical Costs
    July 6, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Sued for Medical Malpractice – Again
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Sued for Medical Malpractice – Again
BusinessPolicy & Law

Sued for Medical Malpractice – Again

Michael Kirsch
Michael Kirsch
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE
Folks who have wandered through the Legal Quality category of this blog understand my views on our perverted and unfair medical malpractice system.  I’ve been in the arena many times, and always walked away unharmed.   If this system were presented in front of a fair minded and impartial jury, it would be dismantled.  Sure, there are positive elements present, but they are dwarfed and suffocated by the drawbacks.
Folks who have wandered through the Legal Quality category of this blog understand my views on our perverted and unfair medical malpractice system.  I’ve been in the arena many times, and always walked away unharmed.   If this system were presented in front of a fair minded and impartial jury, it would be dismantled.  Sure, there are positive elements present, but they are dwarfed and suffocated by the drawbacks. The self-serving arguments supporting the current system are far outweighed by the financial and emotional costs that innocent physicians unfairly bear.  Tort reform should not be controversial. 
 
 
You may wish to peruse a few of my medical malpractice posts before spewing forth vitriol in the comments section.
 
 
Beyond the medical arena, who wants to defend the crushing volume of litigation in the United States?   Let me be bold.  I think we have too much litigation and fear of litigation in this country.  Put that item up for a vote anywhere in the country except at an American Bar Association convention, and you don’t need to be a soothsayer to predict the outcome.  You just need to be breathing.
 
About two years ago, I was sued months after the death of a patient for whom I provided appropriate care.  Being sued is not a lonely process.  I was among many defendants, including several doctors, a hospital and other corporate entities. 
 
I reviewed the medical record and reached two conclusions:
 
    (1)    My care was appropriate and proper
    (2)    The record documented the above.
 
In the medical malpractice arena, it is much more important what has been documented than what has been done.  Meditate on this statement for a few moments.
 
The complaint against me didn’t offer a single specific allegation of a breach of my care.   Instead, there was a general statement, which used against every defendant, that we were negligent.  My attorney also could not divine from the complaint an actual allegation against me.   Isn’t there an obligation to state to the accused what the alleged negligence is?
 
In Ohio, a physician not involved with the case must sign an affidavit of merit swearing that there is a reasonable basis that malpractice occurred before a case can go forward.  While this sounds like a filter, it functions as a sieve.  Shockingly, this single physician swore that every physician deserved to be sued.  I suspect that if a hamster were sued, that this doctor would have put the little varmint in the dock also.
Many of these physician ‘experts’ earn a substantial portion of their incomes by serving trial attorneys.  Anyone spot a conflict of interest here?
 
The case was dropped against everyone, presumably as the plaintiff’s attorney couldn’t find real experts to support the claims of negligence. 
 
I thought I was in the clear until the case was refiled a few months ago.   My attorney petitioned the court to dismiss me as the physician who signed the affidavit of merit was not in my specialty.  The court agreed.  For all I know, this doctor may have been a psychiatrist.
 
What a system.  Consider that I’m only one defendant who was drawn into the legal labyrinth.  My malpractice carrier informed me it cost $11,750.22 to defend me, and my case never even reached the discovery phase.  How’s that for money well spent?
 
I wonder what the financial costs are from all of the unnecessary litigation that our country endures in a year.  Probably, enough to truly reform the health care system.  Hey, this gives me an idea…
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
Global Healthcare Policy & Law
July 17, 2025
paramedics in surgical gloves and masks
How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
Health care
July 16, 2025
a woman giving a key
How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
Health
July 16, 2025
a woman with kinesio tapes on her back arm
How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
Health care
July 16, 2025

You Might also Like

Image
FinanceMedical EthicsMedical InnovationsMedical RecordsMobile Health

A Healthier Conversation

June 17, 2015

What Healthcare Professionals can Learn from Sales People

October 14, 2015
FitnessGlobal HealthcareHealth care

The Changing Role Of Physical Therapy – From Rehab To Pre-Rehabilitation

August 4, 2020
obamacare
Health ReformPolicy & LawPublic Health

Coming: A Two-Tiered Health Care System

May 31, 2013
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?