Professional Education
Loss Lessons: Practicing Out of Bounds
Unlicensed staff are vital to efficient patient flow in medical practice. Healthcare organizations have many tasks that are safely and effectively carried out by skilled unlicensed support staff every day. To reach such efficiencies with safety and reliability, careful attention must be given to scope of practice and state and local statutes regarding delegation and supervision. Policies and protocols that outline the scope of practice for unlicensed staff to follow independently, and when they must consult with licensed staff, help even the most talented of your staff understand their boundaries. This case illustrates how informal verbal guidelines can blur the lines and cause well-meaning staff to cross the boundary lines of their scope leading to misdiagnosis and death.
Search
Community Oncology Alliance Selects The Doctors Company as Exclusive Medical Malpractice Insurance Partner
The Community Oncology Alliance (COA) has chosen The Doctors Company, part of TDC Group, as the exclusively endorsed medical malpractice insurer for its members.
Nonadherent and Noncompliant Patients: Overcoming Barriers
Nonadherent or noncompliant patient conduct (whether intentional or inadvertent) can adversely affect clinical outcomes, undermine the practitioner-patient relationship, and disrupt the operation of practice.
Health Insurance Reform Could Lead to Patient Abandonment: Why the Silence?
Will Washington cancel coverage for millions of patients and unleash a tidal wave of litigation on the U.S. healthcare system? I challenge leaders in healthcare and government to address this question.
January 29, 2025, ACS Practice Management
Lessons Learned from a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit: Aortic Surgery in a Patient with Significant Underlying Coronary Disease
David Han, MD, FACS, and Jacqueline Ross, RN, PhD, Coding Director, The Doctors Company, part of TDC Group, discuss the complications and critical decision-making errors in a case of aortic surgery on a patient with severe coronary disease. The article emphasizes the importance of thorough preoperative evaluation and considering all surgical options to manage complications effectively.
Video Jul 29, 2024
What Is the Reptile Theory and How Does It Impact Medical Malpractice Verdicts?
Plaintiff’s lawyers are using “Reptile Theory”—leveraging the “fight or flight” instinct in jurors—to maximize malpractice verdicts higher than ever seen before. Learn how this dangerous trend of overcoming logic and reason in the courtroom is leading to social inflation and increased healthcare costs in this video featuring Robert White, President of The Doctors Company and TDC Group.
February 26, 2025, STAT News
Are We Adopting AI Scribes Based on…Vibes?
This article examines AI-driven scribe technologies and their marketing claims. It also cites the article "Ambient Listening–Legal and Ethical Issues," in which I. Glenn Cohen, JD; Julie Ritzman, MBA, CPHRM; and Richard F. Cahill, JD, provide a comprehensive analysis of the legal and ethical considerations associated with the use of ambient listening technologies in healthcare settings.
Increasing APC Responsibilities Lead to New Care Models: How TDC Group Provides Support
In a time of worsening physician shortages, new approaches to primary care, home care, and elder care are essential. Thoughtful structuring of care teams can assist many specialties in maintaining or expanding access to care while containing costs, relieving burdens for physicians, and continuing to provide high-quality and attentive care. Learn more about these new care models and how TDC Group provides support from Laura Kline, Senior Vice President of Business Development for TDC Group.
A Message From Our Chairman: Reflections on the Pandemic’s Three-Year Anniversary
As we pass the three-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic and the end of the federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) on May 11, it is a time for reflection, looking back on the exceptional challenges faced, the incredible heroism we witnessed from all healthcare professionals, and the lessons learned.
Telephone Triage and Advice: Patient Safety Strategies
Communications involving telephone triage and advice present a significant area of liability exposure for practitioners.