Stanford Law school has reviewed 37 different studies on malpractice from 1990 to 2019 to find ways to deter medical malpractice. They found three reasons that medical malpractice continues to happen despite current efforts to deter it.
The findings of the study are very interesting. Those that are thinking about suing for medical malpractice may find the results helpful as they broaden their understanding of their case.
What does the data tell us about deterring medical malpractice?
The following three problems were identified by Stanford Law School as problems with the current medical malpractice system:
- Little economic impact: Malpractice claims rarely exceed coverage limits of malpractice insurance and premiums don’t usually increase, so doctors seldom feel a financial pinch from their mistakes.
- Psychological disconnection: The vast majority of malpractice incidents never turn into claims, and some of the ones that do are nebulous. The overall effect can lead a doctor to believe that they aren’t really guilty of malpractice in the first place — especially if they only consider cases that go to litigation.
- Confusing standards of care: Doctors often feel like the definition of negligence is unclear, and simply do not understand the shifting nature of the standard of care that’s required from one situation to the next.
If you are debating about following through with a medical malpractice suit, consider this: Every successful case serves to not only compensate the injured but acts as a deterrent for future acts of negligence by doctors. Furthermore, successfully winning a medical malpractice case gives encouragement to others who may be suffering in silence to take action on their own behalf.