Researchers have found that study participants exposed to shared decision-making reported “higher trust, rated their physicians more highly and were less likely to fault their physicians for the adverse outcome compared with those exposed to no decision-making.”
A recent report, published in the Journal of Toxicology, found that people in the United States are making errors in dosing medications at home. Healthcare providers should be cognizant of the need for patient and caregiver education in the proper administration of both prescribed and over-the-counter medications.
Our Winter 2016 Case Review includes a case study about a claim filed against a urologist who performed a robotically-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP). It not only calls into question the training and experience of the defendant, but also illuminates a failure of communication: the urologist did not disclose an error to the patient.
Physicians and hospitals may be liable to the general public if a patient is not warned of medications that can impair the patient’s driving ability. A third party who is injured in an accident may now sue the physician or hospital directly if there has been a failure to warn the patient of the side effects.