Exploration of Medical Negligence and Medical Malpractice

By: Megan A.

 “The doctor must do everything in his power to save lives, preserve health, or at least alleviate the suffering,” a quote from Hippocrates, a Greek physician whom was considered to be one of the most historical figures in medicine.

For many years, medical professionals have been held to very high standards of honesty, precision, and ethics. Doctors are expected to complete perfect work, properly diagnose, and perform flawless procedures. In other words, they are expected to make no mistakes. However, mistakes are not uncommon. In fact, the Journal of the American Medical Association named medical negligence as the third most common cause of death, behind heart disease and cancer.

Medical negligence is an instance where a medical professional does something or neglects to do something that in turn, harms or hurts the patient. A term often used with medical negligence is medical malpractice, which is considered to be a subcategory of negligence, where treatment is not given as what is considered safe and standard, resulting in injury or death to the patient. Among the medical specialties with high liability, are Obstetricians/Gynecologists, surgeons, and private practice owners. These specialties likely have the highest liability because there are the most chances for mistakes to occur. In situations like the birthing process, it can be easy for problems to occur, and it is very likely for the doctor to be the first person to consider at fault. Although, there are instances where negligence occurs and the fault does lay on the Ob/Gyn. The same goes for surgeons, it can occur where the necessary precautions for performing a procedure are not met, and the patient is left injured. 

In order for negligence to be avoided, doctors and other medical professionals, should be sure to perform proper care and treat patients with the upmost care. Necessary HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) procedures should be met and the American Medical Association's Medical Ethics guidelines should be upheld.

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The Health Insurance Portability Act and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA)

By: Mackenzie L.

The Health Insurance Portability Act and Accountability Act of 1996 or HIPPA, is a Federal Law that states who can and cannot look at or receive your medical records. HIPPA gives you rights over your medical records and should be explained to patients so they understand the rights given to them under the Act of 1996. Health insurance companies, health-care providers, and companies that store and destroy medical records must follow the HIPPA guidelines. If not followed you can lose your medical licenses and would no longer be able to practice medicine.

As I stated above, patients have the rights over their medical records. When I turned eighteen, I had to go to my doctors office and sign a document that gave my mom access to my medical records. As a child or anyone seventeen years or younger, your parents have access to your medical records but at eighteen you are given all rights to your records. This is HIPPA at work, protecting minors and adults.

The information protected under HIPPA is any records your doctors, nurses, and other health providers record, conversations your doctor has about your care or treatment with others, billing information about you at the clinic, and most other health information about you. These are protected by reasonably limited uses and disclosures to accomplish their purpose and set up safeguards to protect stored information on computers and in files.

HIPPA is a very important medical protection that doctors and other medical personal must follow to protect their patients. Although, this is not written into the code of ethics it seems to be a very important for medical personal and their patients to know.

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Information:"Your Rights Under HIPAA." HHS.gov. Office of Civil Rights, 07 May 2008. Web. 28 Feb. 2016. 

The Medicare Act of 1965

By: Toby K.

     What's Medicare:

Medicare is the federal health insurance program for people who are 65 or older, certain younger people with disabilities, and people with End-Stage Renal Disease (permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a transplant, sometimes called ESRD).

Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance)

Part A covers inpatient hospital stays, care in a skilled nursing facility, hospice care, and some home health care.

Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance) 

Part B covers certain doctors' services, outpatient care, medical supplies, and preventive services.

--Medicare.gov

Medicare is a topic of large debate recently. As stated above, anybody over the age of 65 are eligible for Medicare. This has come under fire lately because of the baby boom generation. Since there were so many people that are now eligible for Medicare, doctors are not sure if there are enough people in the United States that are paying social security to cover the cost of all of the members of Medicare.

Another problem surrounding Medicare is the average life expectancy in the United States is on the rise. As of 2012, the life expectancy is 78.74 years. To put that in perspective, the life expectancy in 1965, the year Medicare was established, was 70.22 years. That's an extra 8.52 years that people are getting free medical care.

One solution to fixing the medicare plan is to raise the age of eligibility. Some say that the average age should be above 70 years, some even higher. Another solution is to raise the amount that people pay for social security each year. In my opinion, the Medicare age should be raised instead of the social security rate being changed. This way, citizens would not be paying for each person to go through around 13 years of Medicare on average. 

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Prompt #2: Medical Field Code of Ethics

By: Shane S. 

I. A physician shall be dedicated to providing competent medical care, with compassion and respect for human dignity and rights.

II. A physician shall uphold the standards of professionalism, be honest in all professional interactions, and strive to report physicians deficient in character or competence, or engaging in fraud or deception, to appropriate entities.
III. A physician shall respect the law and also recognize a responsibility to seek changes in those requirements which are contrary to the best interests of the patient.
IV. A physician shall respect the rights of patients, colleagues, and other health professionals, and shall safeguard patient confidences and privacy within the constraints of the law.
V. A physician shall continue to study, apply, and advance scientific knowledge, maintain a commitment to medical education, make relevant information available to patients, colleagues, and the public, obtain consultation, and use the talents of other health professionals when indicated.
VI. A physician shall, in the provision of appropriate patient care, except in emergencies, be free to choose whom to serve, with whom to associate, and the environment in which to provide medical care.
VII. A physician shall recognize a responsibility to participate in activities contributing to the improvement of the community and the betterment of public health.
VIII. A physician shall, while caring for a patient, regard responsibility to the patient as paramount.
IX. A physician shall support access to medical care for all people.

                                                                                                         -Medical Field Code of Ethics


The code of ethics in the medical field are not just rules to follow, they're rules to live by.  In the medical field, you have the life of another human in your hands. Whether it's just a routine check up, or heart surgery, what you say and do affects the patient's health. All people in the medical field, whether it be nurses, surgeons, researchers, etc, must keep the patient's health and well being at top priority.

These ethics are followed by all but a few, and those few who put money over the patient's health pay for it in their reputation being forever tarnished, but also legal trouble and the threat of jail time. Yes, it is very possible that a doctor could give the wrong diagnosis because they legitimately think they diagnosed the patient correctly, but that's the trade off. In order to become a doctor, you must make mistakes and from those mistakes, the student learns. No one is perfect, no one has every answer. When situations like that happen, its how we move on that makes us into not only a doctor, but a leader in the field and community. When operating in the medical field, you cannot disregard the patient. They are your everything and must be treated as such. 

Having the degree and reputation of a doctor, people come to you looking for the answer. Often in communities, you are the center of trust and the only ones who know how to fix what's wrong.  Doctors and medical staff are some of the most highly regarded people in the world. That's why people such as Dr. Oz and shows like "The Doctors" are so popular. You hear answers coming from real medical professionals. You feel a great amount of trust listening to them. They have the answers.

The medical field, where when mistakes are made, it could cost the life of another human. A misdiagnosis could ruin someone's life and prescribing the wrong medication could be detrimental to a person's health. But with that pressure comes the ability to save someone's life, to be able to make someone walk again, to help a family in need, or to give a person a new organ that keeps them living a lot longer. In all of the bad comes the good. If one is able to overcome the bad times, that is what makes them a great professional in the medical field.   

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The Code of Ethics in Veterinary Medicine

By: Allyse S.

1. A veterinarian shall be dedicated to providing competent veterinary medical care, with compassion and respect for animal welfare and human health.
2. A veterinarian shall provide veterinary medical clinical care under the terms of a veterinarian-client-patient relationship (VCPR).
3. A veterinarian shall uphold the standards of professionalism, be honest in all professional interactions, and report veterinarians who are deficient in character or competence to the appropriate entities.
4. A veterinarian shall respect the law and also recognize a responsibility to seek changes to laws and regulations which are contrary to the best interests of the patient and public health.
5. A veterinarian shall respect the rights of clients, colleagues, and other health professionals, and shall safeguard medical information within the confines of the law.
6. A veterinarian shall continue to study, apply, and advance scientific knowledge, maintain a commitment to veterinary medical education, make relevant information available to clients, colleagues, the public, and obtain consultation or referral when indicated.
7. A veterinarian shall, in the provision of appropriate patient care, except in emergencies, be free to choose whom to serve, with whom to associate, and the environment in which to provide veterinary medical care.
8. A veterinarian shall recognize a responsibility to participate in activities contributing to the improvement of the community and the betterment of public health.

-American Veterinary Medical Association, Principles of Veterinary Medical Ethics

Just like any other profession, veterinarians are held to a certain standard in their work and are expected to follow a code of ethics to keep both the client and the patient safe and protected while upholding a minimum level of standard in the veterinary field. Some people take their pets such as dogs, cats, or horses into the veterinarians office with out a second thought to receive vaccinations, blood tests, and many more procedures. They don't think about the danger potential that is held while administering these drugs and antibiotics to their pets. Its easy to misread a dosage and just like that, your furry friend is dead. People take advantage of the high standards that veterinarians hold for themselves. The principles of veterinary medical ethics are in place to protect the people who disregard the danger. If in some case the code of ethics is broken by a certified veterinarian, a veterinary malpractice suit can be filed. 

The most important point in the code of ethics is providing care with compassion and respect for animal welfare and human health. This being said, it takes a specific kind of person to become a veterinarian, simply on the desire to help animals, and keep food production animals healthy. People who are in it for the money are never going to be successful in what they do, because of how demanding the work load is. The schooling is long and tough and will most likely overflow into your personal and social time. To be successful, you have to really have the desire to help. 

"Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine." Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2016.

"American Veterinary Medical Association - Home." American Veterinary Medical Association - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2016.