Medical Diagnoses Commonly Associated With Pediatric Malpractice Lawsuits in the United States

@article{Mcabee2008MedicalDC,
  title={Medical Diagnoses Commonly Associated With Pediatric Malpractice Lawsuits in the United States},
  author={Gary N Mcabee and Steven M. Donn and Robert Allen Mendelson and W. Michael Mcdonnell and Jose Luis Fern{\'a}ndez Gonz{\'a}lez and Julie Kersten Ake},
  journal={Pediatrics},
  year={2008},
  volume={122},
  pages={e1282 - e1286}
}
In this article we discuss the medical diagnoses underlying the most common lawsuits involving pediatricians in the United States. Where applicable, specific and general risk-management techniques are noted as a means of increasing patient safety and reducing the risk of medical malpractice exposure. 

Tables from this paper

Pediatric Medical Malpractice
TLDR
Increasing awareness of why physicians are sued might help clinicians improve their practices and reduce the likelihood of being sued.
Medical Liability and the Neonatologist
TLDR
Understanding the components of medical malpractice, recognizing areas of risk, and practicing within a system of prospective risk management can go a long way to not only reduce the risk of litigation but also improve patient safety and ultimately patient outcomes.
Assessing Risk Factors for Pediatric Medical Injuries Using Nationwide Malpractice Data
TLDR
It was found that the pediatric population is a heterogeneous patient population with unique age-specific risk factors, and on a per-capita basis, non-obstetric infant malpractice claims were much more common than adult claims, whereas non-infant pediatric claims were less common than in adults.
Pediatric malpractice: An overview of Turkey
The objective of this study was to evaluate juridical and medical responsibilities of health‐care professionals accused of malpractice in Turkey while they care for patients under the age of 18.
High-Risk Medicolegal Conditions in Pediatric Emergency Medicine.
Medical Malpractice in Pediatric Orthopaedics: A Systematic Review of US Case Law
TLDR
Orthopaedic surgeons were sued most often for management of fractures and pediatricians for mismanagement of developmental dysplasia of the hip, with high indemnity payments.
Malpractice Risk Among US Pediatricians
TLDR
Indemnity payments among pediatricians are infrequent but large, particularly in cases with permanent patient injury rather than death or temporary injury, and the time required to resolve claims may be considered to be long.
High-risk Pediatric Emergencies.
Epidemiology and aetiology of paediatric malpractice claims in France
TLDR
Paediatric malpractice claims are less frequent in France than in the USA, but they share many similarities with those in the US, including diagnosis-related error and medication error.
Medical Malpractice in Turkey: Pediatric Cases Resulting in Death
TLDR
It is considered to be important for the pediatricians to maintain proper communication with the relatives of the patients while monitoring their health condition, and pediatricians are expected to be more careful—especially in the diagnostic phase—in the cases involving 0-1 age group as children are most likely to be diagnosed as healthy in this age group.
...
1
2
3
4
5
...

References

SHOWING 1-10 OF 27 REFERENCES
Malpractice Claims Involving Pediatricians: Epidemiology and Etiology
TLDR
Examining malpractice claims data that are specific to the specialty of pediatrics to provide a better understanding of the effect that malpractice has on this specialty is provided and is important in truly informing the debate with generalizable facts.
Epidemiology and etiology of malpractice lawsuits involving children in US emergency departments and urgent care centers.
TLDR
Malpractice suits most often involved fractures, meningitis, and appendicitis; many are apparently frivolous; paid indemnities have dramatically increased in recent years.
What Pediatricians Should Know About Child-Related Malpractice Payments in the United States
TLDR
Examination of child-related National Practitioner Data Bank data found that ∼40% of all malpractice awards were the result of surgical or obstetrical issues, and practitioners should be aware of the existence of a mandatory electronic depository that documents all mal practice settlements and judgments involving practitioners.
Diagnosis of acute appendicitis: increasing accuracy, improving outcome, and decreasing liability.
TLDR
Physicians must understand the limitations of the clinical examination and many other diagnostic adjuncts currently available and not be reluctant to consult surgical specialists in borderline cases.
Appendicitis in young children: imaging experience and clinical outcomes.
TLDR
Appendicitis is not rare in young children and imaging findings reflect the high frequency of perforation in this population.
Acute appendicitis in children: emergency department diagnosis and management.
TLDR
The epidemiology, physiology, and age-specific clinical presentation of childhood appendicitis is reviewed, as are strategies for avoiding misdiagnosis and improving emergency department evaluation and management.
Factors that prompted families to file medical malpractice claims following perinatal injuries.
TLDR
Self-reported reasons that prompt families to file malpractice claims following perinatal injuries are identified and families' descriptions of medical events, advice from acquaintances, and the quality of physician-family communication are described.
Atypical clinical features of pediatric appendicitis.
TLDR
Two atypical features are the strongest negative predictors of appendicitis in children: WBC of <10,000 per cubic millimeter and an ANC of <7,500 per cubicMillimeter.
Missed appendicitis in a pediatric emergency department
TLDR
A retrospective review of all patients with appendicitis diagnosed in the ED was undertaken to identify how many patients required more than one visit to diagnose appendix and the clinical characteristics that distinguished the patients who visited twice from patients who were diagnosed on the first visit.
Screening the Newborn for Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip: Now What Do We Do?
The Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America recommends that all health care providers who are involved in the care of infants continue to follow the clinical practice guideline for early
...
1
2
3
...