Medical Ethics
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State supreme court affirms $4.4 million verdict based on lack of informed consent
The male patient fell from a ladder and suffered multiple non-displaced rib fractures, among other injuries. -
1 in 4 handoffs threaten patient safety
The researchers who studied patient handoffs at 23 children’s hospitals found an alarmingly high baseline rate of handoff failure: 25.8% of the handoffs were insufficient or inaccurate.
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Free vaccine app speeds process, documentation
A free app offered by Underwriters Laboratory, based in Franklin, TN, can help risk managers improve their employee vaccination programs. -
Confirmation bias is pitfall for all clinicians
Confirmation bias has been known in healthcare for years, but clinicians still are learning how to avoid this pitfall. Emergency physicians are particularly susceptible, according to the study that most often is cited in explaining the problem. -
Obstetricians’ negligence leads to cerebral palsy, $9.6 million verdict for mother and child
The patient, an adult woman, was admitted to a medical center while 39 weeks pregnant in March 2002. On the day of delivery, the patient -
Personal communication improves handoffs
These are some of the primary changes made to improve the safety of patient handoffs at Akron (OH) Children’s Hospital:
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Corporate negligence can complicate med mal
Claims of corporate negligence can increase the stakes in a malpractice case, as plaintiffs seek the deeper pockets of the employer who hired and allowed a supposedly deficient healthcare provider to injure a patient. -
VA scandal may do harm to patient-physician relationships
The Veterans Affairs (VA) Hospitals scandal, which involved unduly long delays in getting doctors’ appointments that jeopardized veterans’ health, “inevitably erodes trust by patients in individual providers as well as our system of health care. -
Too often, patients not given culturally competent care
When the family of an elderly Chinese patient insisted she not be told about her diagnosis of metastatic cancer, her physician felt he had an obligation to inform the patient. -
Incorporate ethics in all stages of neuroscience research: Avoid damaging ethical lapses
Institutions that fund or conduct neuroscience research should incorporate ethical considerations into all stages of the process, according to the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues’ April 2014 report, Gray Matters, Integrative Approaches for Neuroscience, Ethics, and Society.