Nearly three in five physicians have been named in a malpractice lawsuit, a recent survey from Medscape shows.
Though most respondents — 47 percent — were among several physicians named in the lawsuit and only 12 percent were sued alone, the rate of lawsuits is enough to keep physicians on their toes.
But how much does this awareness influence a physician's approach to patient care? Medscape polled roughly 4,000 primary care physicians and specialists and found those who had been previously named in a malpractice lawsuit were more likely to practice defensive medicine.
Here are four key findings that illustrate how much the threat of malpractice really influences physician decision-making.
- More than half — 54 percent — of physicians who had been named in a lawsuit said the threat affects them always, with every patient, or almost always, compared to 40 percent of physicians who had never been part of a lawsuit.
- More physicians without malpractice lawsuit experience said they are only occasionally bothered by the threat of malpractice, if they are unsure of a diagnosis or have a combative patient, compared to those who had been named in lawsuits, at rates of 34 percent and 26 percent respectively.
- Of those who had never been in a lawsuit, 24 percent said they were rarely concerned by it, compared to 19 percent who had been in a lawsuit.
- Just 3 percent of all physicians surveyed said they are never concerned by the threat of a malpractice lawsuit.
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