The report of American Medical Association (AMA) made a revealing report that American patients are habitually suing their medical doctors for every opportunity they can grab and thus medical doctors are now becoming smarter to find some shield against medical malpractice lawsuits. Because of the disgruntled patients who are willing to take their issues into the courtroom, the resulting effect is the increasing costs on health care services.
Statistics show that 61% of doctors over the age of 55 are sued every year for medical malpractice. The medical practitioners who are most commonly prone to lawsuits are gynecologists and obstetricians, family doctors, internists, pediatricians and psychiatrists. In the report published by the Journal of the American Medical Association, medical practitioners found some ways in order to fight back by taking measures to protect them from liabilities for medical malpractice. Some of these measures include avoiding procedures that could increase the risks to complications, avoiding patients with complicated medical conditions and those with the behavioral tendency to become litigious and to order series of tests that would help protect them against future lawsuits in medical malpractice.
While the incidence of lawsuits on medical malpractice that are filed continues to pile up not all of them were pursued and litigated. About 65% of these cases were dismissed, dropped or withdrawn by the complainant while 90% of doctors who were sued won a favorable judgment. The lawsuit costs for medical malpractice however is relatively lower as compared to the healthcare costs as a result of this legal battle.
Doctors are now smarter in ordering series of tests, sometimes some are not really needed, in order to protect themselves from possible lawsuits. Needless tests are usually prescribed or ordered by physicians especially among those with risky and complicated medical conditions. Doctors try to shield themselves against possible lawsuit by ordering additional tests that would help acquit them from possible liabilities. As a result, the order of needless tests and examinations caused a rise in the health care costs.
Doctors are now undertaking to participation in the call for a legal medical reform in the country. Some states have already implemented a cap to the amount of damages to be imposed in medical related lawsuits. In some states like Illinois and Georgia the caps were not approved by the courts. As a result of this growing problem, some alternative measures are being considered to address the growing lawsuit and health care costs.
Biography: Shawn Phillips is a well-known Holistic Personal Trainer in Los Angeles and Certified Nutrition Coach specializing in body sculpting, nutrition, lab testing, and exercise coaching. For a FREE consultation call him at (310) 720-8125.