Malpractice Liability

Malpractice Liability Dr. Jean Orr Malpractice Malpractice:   The failure to render professional services To exercise the degree of skill that is ordinarily expected of other professionals in a similar situation Malpractice   It’s a legal concept involving negligence that results in injury or loss to client Expected that clinicians will possess and exercise knowledge, skill, and judgment common to other members of profession = Standard of Care Malpractice Situations Limited to 6 kinds of situations: 1. Procedure used was not within acceptance prof. practice 2. Employed a technique that he/she not trained to use 3. Did not use a procedure that would have been more helpful Malpractice Situations Continued… 4. Failed to warn others about and protect them from a violent client 5. Informed consent to tx was not obtained or not documented 6. Did not explain possible consequences of tx Malpractice Claim Success at malpractice claim must include: 1. Duty: Professional relationship b/w therapist and client 2. Breach of Duty: Therapist acted in negligent or improper manner or deviated from standard of care by not providing services considered to be standard practice in the community Malpractice Claim Claims Continued… 3. Injury: Client must have suffered harm or injury which must be demonstrated 4. Causation: Must be legally demonstrated causal relationship b/w clinician’s negligence or breach of duty and damage or injury claimed by client. Malpractice Claim   Burden of proof that harm actually occurred is the client’s Client must demonstrate that all 4 elements applied in client’s situation Malpractice Suits Three General Problem Areas that Pose Highest Risk of Malpractice Suits: 1. Violations of clients’ personal rights (sex, privacy, wrongful commitment) 2. Failure to protect others from clients (failure to warn, failure to commit, wrongful release cases) 3. Incompetent tx of client (often alleged in suicide cases) Professional Negligence Nine Types of Professional Negligence that puts Therapists at Legal Risk: 1. Failure to obtain or document informed consent 2. Client Abandonment 3. Marked departures from established therapeutic practices Professional Negligence 4. 5. 6. Practicing beyond the scope of competency Misdiagnosis Repressed or false memory Professional Negligence 7. Unhealthy transference relationships 8. Sexual abuse of client 9. Failure to control a dangerous client Malpractice Liability in the Helping Professions  1. How would you define malpractice?  2. What does civil liability mean?  3. What constitutes professional negligence?  4. What is the meaning of the concept of "standard of care"?  5. What four conditions must be present in malpractice litigation? Define these four elements of malpractice: duty, breach of duty, injury, and causation.  6. What are the two main grounds for malpractice suits? What kind of violations have received the greatest attention in the literature? 7. Be able to describe each of the following as a cause of malpractice suits:          failure to obtain informed consent client abandonment departing from established therapeutic practices practicing beyond the scope of competency misdiagnosis unhealthy transference relationships sexual abuse of a client failure to control a dangerous client managed care and malpractice  8. What has been the impact of malpractice litigation on practitioners?  9. What are some precautions that you would like take in dealing with high-risk clients?  10. What are some ways to protect yourself from malpractice suits? Identify specific safeguards and risk management strategies to lessen the chance of being successfully sued.  11. What course of action might you follow in a malpractice suit?  12. How do legal liability and ethical practice overlap at times?