10 things that can get a physician sued

My recently received newsletter from the Texas Medical  Group Management Association has a lengthy article on the subject of those things that can get a physician sued for malpractice. It was written by the Texas Medical Liability Trust (TMLT) Risk Management Department. Per the article, the following are the ten things that get physicians sued:

1. Failing to listen to patients, spend adequate time with them, and communite empathetically with them;

2. Maintaining illegible or incomplete documentation;

3. Allowing staff to treat patients poorly;

4. Being accessible to patients;

5. Failing to order and follow up on indicated tests or delay in ordering such tests;

6. Failing to refer when appropriate, failure to track referrals, and failure to communicate with referring physicians;

7. Inappropriately prescribing medications;

8. Improper care of patients during emergency situations;

9. Failing to obtain informed consent; and

10. Allowing noncompliant patients to take charge.