Study: Most Doctors Will Be Sued During Career
Thursday, 18 August 2011 | by Pat's Picks
This is depressing. Researchers at Harvard say most doctors in the US can look forward to an unfortunate milestone at some point in their careers: getting sued. Those who perform high-risk procedures, says the Boston Globe, “face a near certainty of being named in a malpractice case before they reach age 65.” But even family practitioners, a relatively tame specialty, face a 75 percent chance of getting sued. It’s interesting to note, however, that only 22 percent of the cases resulted in a monetary settlement.
For the study, researchers broke down malpractice suits by medical specialty; Neurosurgeons topped the list, psychologists brought up the rear.
Read the full study, published in the latest issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.