$58.6 million judgment against OB/GYN in CT

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bomgd3 said:
http://blogs.courant.com/connecticut_insurance/2011/05/in-medical-malpractice-case-ju.html

Holy. Crap.
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It's absurd that we have juries deciding these cases. A "jury of your peers" is not fit to decide cases like these because they make decisions based on emotion and not on fact and accepted standards of care. An easy way to bring down healthcare costs is to stop having absurd jury malpractice trials and put it in the hands of an expert judge or expert panel of judges to determine whether there truly was negligence on the part of the physician.
 
Fail. Stuff like this is the reason why in 40 years, people will wonder why there is nobody around to deliver their babies.

In Canada, when there is a malpractice claim, the physician is defended by the Canadian Medical Protective Association, a non-profit mutual defense group which vigorously defends both the case at hand and the reputation of the physician. They don't settle any cases out of court so that the maximum number of physicians can have their names cleared and also greatly reduces frivolous lawsuits. They also will pay damages to an unlimited amount for the cases they lose.

Why don't we have that in the US? Why are our physicians on their own?
 
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skinMD said:
It's absurd that we have juries deciding these cases. A "jury of your peers" is not fit to decide cases like these because they make decisions based on emotion and not on fact and accepted standards of care. An easy way to bring down healthcare costs is to stop having absurd jury malpractice trials and put it in the hands of an expert judge or expert panel of judges to determine whether there truly was negligence on the part of the physician.
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+1. A jury is largely incapable of differentiating between following standards of care and bad outcomes.

What's even more disheartening in this case is that the OB did follow the accepted standards of care according to his defense attorney, despite the bad outcome.
 
In the UK, if you've followed the recommendation of NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence, I believe - it makes recommendations and approves drugs) you cannot be sued.

In France:

Up until 2002, France's malpractice system looked similar to the United States'. Patients brought their cases to court and then either settled or received an award. The two main differences between France and the United States' practices are that first, France had no caps on malpractice awards, and second, there were several rules that made it more difficult for patients to win a case.
However, since 2002 things work differently in France. France has moved to a out‐of‐court, no‐fault system in which wronged patients bring claims before their regions' government‐appointed review board which is responsible for determining whether or not compensation is in order, and if so, how much. Money for patient relief comes from a national compensation fund which gets its funds from insurance premiums placed on doctors and hospitals or from general fund revenues.
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http://www.codebluenow.org/vital-signs/Malpractice.pdf

Frankly, I'm not sure why anyone would want to do OB-GYN.


And people wonder whey the US does so many C-sections....if you do a c-section you can't be accused of 'not doing everything.'
 
ArcGurren said:
There is way too much emotional tampering.
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yup...and i'm sure the lawyers were salivating over this case....

from the article:

The couple had tried for six years to have a baby before resorting to in-vitro fertilization. "It was a long road just to get pregnant," Cathy D'Attilo said.
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i guarantee you that was brought up in the trial to try and get the jury to feel sorry for the woman ...and it obviously worked
 
So what now? The doctor will be forced to declare bankruptcy and not work a single day as a physician again since no malpractice insurance company will take her on?
 
The jury also awarded $50 million in non-economic damages, which was at the jury's discretion.
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There are 530 OB/GYNs out of ~14000 total physicians in Connecticut. $58.6 million amounts to $110,566 for each OB/GYN, or $4,185 for each physician in the state. That's more than double every OB/GYN's yearly premium combined.

I feel bad for this couple, I really do. But...come on now.
 
Wow. What a bunch of ****ing bull****. I will never work in a state that has no malpractice caps. I say all the OB's walk out of that ****. Unbelievable.
 
Long Way to Go said:
There are 530 OB/GYNs out of ~14000 total physicians in Connecticut. $58.6 million amounts to $110,566 for each OB/GYN, or $4,185 for each physician in the state. That's more than double every OB/GYN's yearly premium combined.

I feel bad for this couple, I really do. But...come on now.
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The OBs in CT really should bail. As per the article, this isn't the first time the biased jury has given such a pay day to similar parents....👍
 
This is why I'm gunning for dermatology. (A field that I have so little interest in, I found shadowing torturous.)
 
Frazier said:
"Malpractice/law/tort reform?" lolzzzz
obama_money.gif
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:roflcopter:
 
The best is that people still wonder:

Why do we do more C-sections in the US than anywhere else?

Why do docs practice CYA medicine?

Why is there a shortage of OB's?

🙄
 
DrYoda said:
It is too bad they have a disabled kid, but seriously. You can be sympathetic and not award an insane amount of money.
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To quote/paraphrase a professor at my institutions law school who studies medical malpractice, "A damaged infant is the quickest way to an award from a personal injury suit."

It sucks that their kid and they are suffering, but sometimes bad stuff happens. Even when everything is pulled off to the T, some things just go wrong. It is sad, but that juries see a hurt kid and feel terrible. That terrible feeling leads to awards like this.

Only the plaintiff's attorney is a winner in this case.
 
Absurd. 58 million after following the standard of care.

Doc had no way of knowing their was an oxygen deficiency if it wasn't showing up on the heart monitor. I'm sure once it did he did the C-section.

Fortunately, it will be appealed and reduced to a reasonable amount.

I feel bad, but it happens, birth is not always perfect and unfortunately MRCP isn't as rare as it should be.

Not to mention the poor kid, who has no consciousness other than pain. And his parents will keep him alive as long as they can costing millions. Futile care.
 
I really, really hope they appeal this case. This is absolutely ridiculous. As much as I'd love to feel more sympathy for the parents here, this reeks of pure greed either on their part or the part of the lawyers. Based on what is written the doctor was not in any way criminally liable here.

This makes me so angry. Not only does it hurt this poor guy, it puts a HUGE burden on the other OBs practicing in the state. This is one of the reasons I'm never, ever going into this field.
 
New York state is probably the most litigious place in the nation.

The other day I saw a malpractice firm ad on the subway, advertising a successful award of 77 million against an OB/Gyn.
 
I think in terms of malpractice rates, FL was the highest if I'm not mistaken?
 
i'm on OB.. today my attending talked about a case she worked as a pgy2.. mom PPROM at home, calls EMS, hypo to 50/20, moribund in ER, peri-mortum CS performed successfully, mom passes, baby saved but severely handicapped. Ten years Dad writes her a lengthy, sincere letter of appreciation for saving the life of his son every year for christmas.

It's all about perspective.
 
Slack3r said:
The best is that people still wonder:

Why do we do more C-sections in the US than anywhere else?

Why do docs practice CYA medicine?

Why is there a shortage of OB's?

🙄
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It's really sad but true, and I'm very conflicted about it because I truly feel like I got the s*** end of the stick thanks to CYA medicine when Chicklet was born. Ob/Gyn remains one of my top interests, but the experience left such a bad taste in my mouth I delayed applying for a year to think it all over (medicine as a career path, that is).

shaggy alfresco said:
I think in terms of malpractice rates, FL was the highest if I'm not mistaken?
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PA's up there, but I do believe FL is the worst, at least for Ob/Gyns, and IIRC, they have the second highest malpractice rates after neurosurgeons. The hell...
 
Geekchick921 said:
PA's up there, but I do believe FL is the worst, at least for Ob/Gyns, and IIRC, they have the second highest malpractice rates after neurosurgeons. The hell...
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Malpractice for Ob/Gyns in Miami can now exceed $250k/yr; from what I understand most forego it completely and more closely cherry pick the patients they see. It's sad.
 
Whenever I discuss Ob/Gyn rotation with non-med school friends, particularly those thinking about getting pregnant, they're disgusted by the number C-sections and procedures performed. A fair amount of them actually insist on home births as a result.

Oh well.
 
If the OB/Gyn's have any cajones, they would either shut down their practice or walk out of that God forsaken state that is CT and move where there is smaller malpractice requirements. When there is no one to deliver their babies outside some FM docs and midwives, they'll get the message. But alas, I don't think they would shut down their business.

Also, no one cares to bring up the fact that even if the OB/Gyn doc had won, they'd still probably be on the hook for large legal fees.
 
And this case only reaffirms my opinion that 99% if not all medical malpractice lawyers are scumbags and the lowest form of human existence.
 
Since this doc didn't settle outta court I'm guessing the standard of care was indeed delivered and another physician just got hosed by the public he serves. Of course, that doesn't change the fact that this kid was dealt a tragic hand.

That being said, I'm tired of the "debates" on med-mal reform/lack their of, how much doctors should be paid, weather health care is a "right" or a "privilege"...or whatever other talking points a politician might choose to spew...

On this night, all I want is a cap on what a lawyer can make from non-class action settlements/rulings. Of course that won't happen since most legislators are lawyers...but a guy's gotta dream.

OK, going to crawl back into my boards-studying hole.
 
Radonkulous said:
Also, no one cares to bring up the fact that even if the OB/Gyn doc had won, they'd still probably be on the hook for large legal fees.
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Getting rid of the "loser-pays" rule (forget the exact term for it) is also another major catalyst for the litigious climate we have today. US legal system is ****ed.
 
I guess the solution would be less OB and more Gyn for the docs in CT...
 
There is no way this decision will stand anyway, but still, it's ridiculous.
 
Don't they have a expert opinion for these kinds of cases (ex. a physician from another state)? If so, who the hell would testify against the defendant for this case?
 
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Radonkulous said:
And this case only reaffirms my opinion that 99% if not all medical malpractice lawyers are scumbags and the lowest form of human existence.
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You won't believe what kinds of reactions people have had seeing this article when I showed it to them. Predictably, almost everyone who wasn't in the field of medicine insisted that the doctor was at fault, even though I showed that he had followed the standard of care and then some to try and help the baby. This is why malpractice lawyers are greedy ****s, they play off of peoples' emotions in order to get money.

It's sad, because I know a lawyer who refuses to do malpractice on principle (his son is a doctor) and actually has defended doctors pro bono. Guess how little money he makes in comparison to these turds.
 
The solution is obvious to me. If all the OB docs in the country stopped doing deliveries today in protest then within 2 weeks this problem would be solved.
 
yamaraja808 said:
Don't they have a expert opinion for these kinds of cases (ex. a physician from another state)? If so, who the hell would testify against the defendant for this case?
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Money and no sense of looking after your own kind.

Not that I wanted to do OB/Gyn in the first place, but that crap is a big reason why I'd seriously consider avoiding it even if it were on my short list of specialties. It's an emotional minefield when you start talking about children.

So glad we still have places like Texas with tort reform and a sharply-declined frequency of lawsuits against doctors in the past years. I didn't want to go into medicine to worry myself sick about being consistent with standard of care and then some, and still getting sued by someone who's upset that medicine couldn't do more at the time -- or sees a quick buck. Tragic outcomes don't mean that it's the doctor's fault.
 
I don't know all the issues of this case so I really can't say this was a bad decision. Also about 72% malpractice lawsuits get thrown out so there is probably something more to this case.
 
On one hand the OBs have radical natural-child birthers breathing down their necks wanting them to perform less c-sections. The homebirth rate in the states rose by 20% from 2001-2004 due to this "return to homebirth" phenomenon, so I know the OBs must be feeling the pressure. On the other hand, you have these 60 million dollar lawsuits due to waiting too long for the c-section. No wonder our c-section rate is 30%.
 
You guys are blaming the wrong guy. The lawyer cant do jack without an "expert" witness ready to back up his story.

So, who was this 'expert' who testified? Find him and you'll find the real villain. I'm sure he got a nice 200k payday for his bogus testimony in this case.

Medical doctors are the #1 advertiser/solicitor for services in the medical malpractice field. We have literally thousands of doctors who do nothing but ***** out themselves as "experts" for the lawyers.

When you make 10k per week as an "expert" and only 3k per week as a medical doctor, its easy to see why MDs lie on the stand.
 
Eh, my brother has cerebral palsy from a "birth injury". Sounds a lot like this kid in the video in regards to his physical disabilities- can't stand, walk, clothe or bathe himself, etc. I know how much it costs to care for a CP kid. It's costly, sure. (My parents did not sue, by the way.) Is it 58 million dollars costly? No way. I guess it can be if you want a new van every year, a custom built 10K square foot house outfitted for complete handicap accessibility, 24/7 around the clock care by an RN, top notch complete physical therapy and elaborate vacations every year.

My question is: Where is the 58 million dollars going to come from? Do physicians even carry that much malpractice insurance? If the OB's malpractice won't cover it, I assume they are going to go after this OB's personal assets as well.
 
I have a question about what happens after cases like this. If you're the physician and you lose a case involving a multi-million dollar judgement, what happens next? In this guy's case, he appeals. Maybe the appeal is successful and maybe it's not.

Is he screwed for the rest of his life with regards to his ability to get malpractice insurance? Ie, is his career essentially over?

I know the adage with regards to being sued as a physician is "It's not if you'll be sued, but when". But the vast majority of malpractice cases are settled before going to court or decided in the physician's favor and everyone goes on with their life. If you're this particular OB/GYN, do you have to go find a new career?
 
namethatsmell said:
On this night, all I want is a cap on what a lawyer can make from non-class action settlements/rulings. Of course that won't happen since most legislators are lawyers...but a guy's gotta dream.
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That's exactly right. Oh and guess who Kathleen Nastri makes political contributions to...

http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/contributions/kathleen-nastri.asp?cycle=08

Its a corrupt system, unfortunately the corruption runs far to deep to repair by simply voting.
 
theshellyb said:
I have a question about what happens after cases like this. If you're the physician and you lose a case involving a multi-million dollar judgement, what happens next? In this guy's case, he appeals. Maybe the appeal is successful and maybe it's not.

Is he screwed for the rest of his life with regards to his ability to get malpractice insurance? Ie, is his career essentially over?

I know the adage with regards to being sued as a physician is "It's not if you'll be sued, but when". But the vast majority of malpractice cases are settled before going to court or decided in the physician's favor and everyone goes on with their life. If you're this particular OB/GYN, do you have to go find a new career?
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Well it depends. If you lose a case like this, chances are very strong that it'll be overturned or reduced severely. However, if its not for whatever reason, then yes, they can go after your personal assets if your malpractice doesn't cover all of it.
 
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