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Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017
| Contributor Information
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Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Cardiologists confront many challenges—among them, malpractice lawsuits. In a recent survey, more than 4000 physicians, including cardiologists, told Medscape how malpractice lawsuits affected their lives, why they were sued, what happened with the case, and how it has affected the way they practice medicine. Here are the results.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Malpractice lawsuits are pervasive. Sixty percent of cardiologists have been named in a lawsuit. Over half (53%) were involved in suits where other parties were also named, while 12% were involved in suits where they were the only person named.
Numbers in charts may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Over two fifths (43%) of cardiologists who were sued have been named in one lawsuit. More than half (54%), however, have been sued two to five times.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Malpractice lawsuits typically catch cardiologists off-guard. Among cardiologists sued, 61% were very surprised by the suit and 30% were somewhat surprised, while 9% weren't surprised at all.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Among cardiologists, the top reasons for a lawsuit were complications from treatment or surgery (36%), wrongful death (25%), and failure to treat or delayed treatment (21%).
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Among cardiologists named in a malpractice lawsuit, 91% felt that the suit was unwarranted. Seven percent weren't sure and 2% agreed that the suit had merit.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
What adds to the ominous specter of malpractice is that in many situations, there is no forewarning. Almost half (48%) of cardiologists said that they knew of no event that sparked the lawsuit or would have alerted them to expect a suit. More than one third (36%) of cardiologists said there was such an incident, while 16% said they didn't recall the circumstance.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Besides worrying about the outcome of a lawsuit, cardiologists lose work time to prepare. Close to half (42%) of cardiologists spent more than 40 hours on their defense, including getting records together, meeting with their attorney, and preparing for depositions and discussions. Thirteen percent of cardiologists devoted 6 to 10 hours to these and other tasks, and another 11% allocated 11 to 20 hours of their time.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Giving sworn evidence is an integral process in seeking the facts of the case. The information gained at depositions is often used to decide how to proceed with the case. The majority of cardiologists (84%) named in a malpractice lawsuit were involved in giving depositions.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Defendant attorneys say that cardiologists sometimes get themselves into trouble during depositions by volunteering information that the plaintiff attorney can use to trip them up. Cardiologists who have been through depositions provided the advice above for other physicians.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
One third (33%) of cardiologists who were sued said their lawsuits were resolved in under a year, while 24% reported that it took 3 to 5 years. For 7%, however, the process dragged on for over 5 years.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Slightly over one fifth (21%) of cardiologists in our survey said that their lawsuit was settled before trial. Covering all types of lawsuits, the vast majority of cases do settle.[1] Of note, only 4% of respondents said the case went to trial and the jury decided against them. For 18% of cardiologists, the judge or jury returned a verdict in their favor.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Losing a lawsuit can be financially devastating to both the practice and the physician's personal finances. Not surprisingly, almost all cardiologists (96%) said they have malpractice coverage. In a number of states, physicians are not required to carry malpractice insurance. In the first decade of the 2000s, "going bare" was an option chosen by a number of physicians; that option has since become less popular.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Over half (60%) of cardiologists think that the outcome of their malpractice suit was fair. Forty percent hold the opposite opinion.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
A malpractice lawsuit can change a cardiologists' view on patients and healthcare. One in five cardiologists no longer trust patients and now treat them differently. Going through a lawsuit prompted 4% of cardiologists to leave their practice setting.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Malpractice lawsuits can be challenging and difficult, but only 30% of cardiologists feel that the lawsuit negatively affected their overall medical career. Seventy percent said the lawsuit had no negative effect.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Hindsight is 20/20, and looking back, cardiologists who were sued say they would have done things differently to avoid the suit. Better chart documentation was cited most often (27%). Cardiologists also wish they had spent more time with the patient and his or her family (13%) or never taken on the individual as their patient in the first place (11%).
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
In 36 states, certain statements concerning disclosure or apologies are prohibited from being admissible in a medical malpractice lawsuit. Cardiologists are still skeptical. The majority in our survey (79%) do not believe that saying "I'm sorry" to the plaintiff earlier, or at all, would have made a difference in whether they were sued.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
For over a third (38%) of cardiologists, the threat of lawsuits is on their mind all or most of the time. Many say that this is the motivation for so many physicians practicing defensive medicine. But 30% of cardiologists said they rarely or never have these thoughts.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Over one fourth of cardiologists (28%) indicated that the threat of malpractice influences their actions all or most of the time. A greater percentage of cardiologists (43%) said that it occasionally influences their actions. Only 5% said that it never does.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Although the potential for a malpractice suit is greater when dealing with high-risk patients, most cardiologists in our survey (88%) have not turned away such patients.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Many malpractice insurers offer a risk audit to help cardiologists lower the malpractice risk at their practice. Still, over half of cardiologists (56%) have not had nor plan to have a risk assessment. Almost one fourth (23%) of cardiologists said that they have done so, and 20% expect to do so in the future.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
While 20% of cardiologists would not sue another physician, almost three quarters (74%) said that if they were harmed by another physician they would consider suing, depending on the situation. Only 5% said that they would definitely sue another physician.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Politicians and medical organizations have promoted various ways to reduce the number of malpractice lawsuits. The most effective ways to discourage malpractice lawsuits, as cited by cardiologists, were placing caps on noneconomic damages (53%), having a medical panel screen cases for merit (50%), and making the plaintiff responsible for attorney and legal fees of every party involved, if they lose (47%).
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Nearly 7 in 10 cardiologists gave a thumbs-down to major medical organizations' or state societies' efforts, and only 2% felt that these organizations were active enough in working to improve the malpractice environment.
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
Medscape Cardiology Malpractice Report 2017: Real Physicians. Real Lawsuits.
Sandra Levy; Leslie Kane, MA | December 5, 2017 | Contributor Information
More than 19,200 physicians in over 27 specialties responded to this year's Medscape compensation survey and told about their compensation, productivity, challenges, and more.Medscape Features Slideshows, April 2017
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Contributor Information
Sandra Levy
Senior Editor, Medscape Business of Medicine
Leslie Kane, MA
Senior Director, Medscape Business of Medicine
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References
DrCPR.com. 2013-2014 malpractice premiums: doctors paying $195,891 a year for coverage. June 22, 2014. (Source: Medical Liability Mutual Insurance Company. Physician-What's My Premium? February 2014.)
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