by Michael Matray, editor of Medical Liability Monitor Consumer demand for convenience, access and affordability is changing how episodic-care and preventative medicine is delivered in the United States. A novelty 15 years ago, today there are more than 3,000 convenient care clinics in the United States, most located within the nation’s largest big-box retail outlets. […]

Most physicians and small practices often don’t give marketing much thought. After all, the days are already long and there is more than enough work each day just trying to stay on top of the basics: patient care, medical records and billing. But, with the ever-growing number of online outlets for patients to provide reviews […]

When we talk about the “art and science” of medicine, the ability to negotiate with patients and colleagues clearly falls under the “art” part. And, while more and more medical schools are recognizing the importance of teaching communication skills, like breaking bad news, I don’t know if any school is teaching the art of negotiation […]

We love advances in technology over at My Medical Malpractice Insurance. Especially when they can help doctors lower their risks and speed up complex surgeries that saves lives. Science Translational Medicine published a study conducted at the medical school at Imperial College London about the uses of a new tool called the  iKnife last week. […]

Every health care provider should learn about Josie King and her story. A lot of times, when we think of medical errors that result in death, we think of errors that are major and dramatic. But this was not the case with Josie King. Josie King was an 18-month old little girl who died from […]

Many physicians are surprised to hear that cocaine is still used today in medicine –but why is this? Is it because it’s not that relevant to their specialty, and they don’t have the need to use it, or is it because they simply don’t think that it’s still relevant as a drug to be used […]

A community hospital in Boulder Colorado is facing a major challenge this week because it’s computer system has failed.  The IT professionals handling the outage have not been able to determine what caused the issue, or if it is related to hacking.  These types of warning signs should grab the attention of hospital and medical […]

While physicians choose to specialize in different areas of medicine, and focus on different parts of the body and disease states, all physicians deal with many different kinds and levels of emotion displayed by their patients. Thus, diagnosing and treating a patient does not occur in a vacuum –diagnoses and treatment plans impact not only […]

Side Note: Last week we talked about the uniqueness of the emergency room –specifically, how the acuteness of the patient’s situation, paired with the lack of a medical record, often produces a situation ripe with liability exposure and potential medical malpractice. Today, we face a similar situation –how pharmacists in New Hampshire are being allowed […]