The first known case of medical
malpractice involved a breach of contract litigation between a patient who sued
a doctor that repaired a badly maimed hand, but did not meet expectations. The
judge in that case set out some basic principles in medical malpractice: If a patient is injured as a result of
physician negligence, the physician is liable. However, simply being unable to
heal a patient does not represent medical malpractice. The term "medical
malpractice" wasn't coined until 1765 in England describing neglect or
unskilled practice by a doctor that ultimately leads to harm.
Starting in the 1840s, malpractice lawsuits became more common as the physician started getting the blame for poor medical outcomes. Reasons for this included: the citizenry had discarded beliefs about God being in charge of poor outcomes, poor medical training, and also no medical standards. The American Medical Association was formed in 1847 and began developing standards of medical care. The doctor's performance could then be measured against these standards which actually encouraged more patients to sue. Many patients began hoping for monetary judgments even if they did not actually believe the doctor was at fault.
Improvements in medicine fueled, and continue to fuel, malpractice lawsuits. Patients who before may have simply been thankful to survive, began to anticipate being cured, not just being happy to be alive -- being alive, but disabled wasn't good enough. Malpractice suits are likely when patient expectations exceed what medicine can produce. For example, lawsuits over obstetrics are considerably more common that litigation over geriatric medicine. Many folks acknowledge that modern medicine hasn't promised a cure for old age, but feel that a risk free delivery and a healthy infant is assured. Sadly, medical advances can lead to a rise in medical legal problems as patient become more demanding and unrealistic results are expected.
Starting in the 1840s, malpractice lawsuits became more common as the physician started getting the blame for poor medical outcomes. Reasons for this included: the citizenry had discarded beliefs about God being in charge of poor outcomes, poor medical training, and also no medical standards. The American Medical Association was formed in 1847 and began developing standards of medical care. The doctor's performance could then be measured against these standards which actually encouraged more patients to sue. Many patients began hoping for monetary judgments even if they did not actually believe the doctor was at fault.
Improvements in medicine fueled, and continue to fuel, malpractice lawsuits. Patients who before may have simply been thankful to survive, began to anticipate being cured, not just being happy to be alive -- being alive, but disabled wasn't good enough. Malpractice suits are likely when patient expectations exceed what medicine can produce. For example, lawsuits over obstetrics are considerably more common that litigation over geriatric medicine. Many folks acknowledge that modern medicine hasn't promised a cure for old age, but feel that a risk free delivery and a healthy infant is assured. Sadly, medical advances can lead to a rise in medical legal problems as patient become more demanding and unrealistic results are expected.
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