Doctors hope walkout pressures Legislators

Mark Phenicie, executive director of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association in Harrisburg, said it's the physicians who are greedy.

The cat said as it swallowed the canary.

"Physicians representing the medical societies of nine counties will attend a malpractice seminar today at Westmoreland Regional Hospital in Greensburg. On Tuesday, they will travel to Harrisburg to pressure lawmakers to reform the malpractice insurance industry."

I'm sure there is room for legislative reformation/changes in the insurance industry, but it seems to me that people that get hurt and go to a physician for help somehow thinks that the physician is God and is capable of doing wrong, but that his nature is not to ... consequently, the physician is at fault every time something goes wrong and it is an intentional malpractice by the physician.

Lawyers must figure in to this equation as well.

They too are somewhat of an elite entity in the eyes of the public and they promise to get some money for the client/patient.

All of this stems, IMO, from a wrong worldview that has developed because people no longer have life in a proper perspective.

Instead of,
"Don't touch that stove ... it'll burn you."

We have,
"Don't touch that stove ... it'll burn you. But if you do get burned, don't worry we'll get you money somehow."

"Don't touch that stove ... it'll burn you. But if you do get burned, don't worry we'll get you money somehow."

Very true, and the trial lawyers and their political lackeys, the democrats, are the people who in the last 30 years have perpetuated this thinking, IMO.

I'm telling you, folks, if our state and federal governments do not stop this insanity in our justice system we do not need to worry about how our nation will fall. You know most of these cases never make it to trial..The Doctor's insurance company will pay up to get rid of the persecution. Then, guess what? It goes on the physician's public record that he was sued and lost. Therefore, people think he is incompetent, when the reality is that the deep pockets are the successful and skilled doctors who are most likely to perform risky surgeries and treatments and therefore are most vunerable to this kind of mischief. Did the Godfather practice this kind of thing..I think so. The problem is that we have allowed the seats in government to be occupied by lawyers. The Trial Lawyers Association, as I understand it, are BIG donors to political parties. A "Loser Pays" law should come into being..Other advanced nations have it and they do not have this kind of problem. I have heard that the frivilous activity of trial lawyers exacts a 2% hidden tax on our society, and they produce nothing. They are parasitical. People need to march in the streets on this one. A great article about this, GETTING FAT ON TORTS by William Tucker, was published in the WEEKLY STANDARD, Feb., 24, 2003. I sometimes wonder where these greedy lawyers find doctors to treat them when they are sick. To all good lawyers out there..I know these guys and gals give you a lot of business defending the people and the companies they bring suits against, but you need to police your profession..There are many more of you than there are of them. It would be a great legacy to leave your society...

The Trial Lawyers Association, as I understand it, are BIG donors to political parties

The trial lawyers are big donors to one political party, the democrats. Sure they may give money to Republicans, but I bet you the percentage is 95% to the demos and 5% to the Pubbies.

A "Loser Pays" law should come into being..Other advanced nations have it and they do not have this kind of problem. I have heard that the frivilous activity of trial lawyers exacts a 2% hidden tax on our society, and they produce nothing.

Very true, but the demos and trial lawyers will scream bloody murder if even an small change is attempted. Democrats are the ones who are blocking the cause of tort reform.

You are correct on both counts. Thanks for clarifying this further.

Here's a simple 2 step solution.

Have every patient agree in writing before becoming a patient that they, nor any lawyer working on their behalf, will sue their doctor for malpractice unless that doctor FIRST is found liable for malpractice by a majority of a pre-selected 4 doctor board of same-specialty doctors who determine that he is indeed guilty of malpractice. The board will have 4 members with one member each appointed by: the patient, the doctor, the insurance board, and the state.

This takes it into the area of an existing contract between the patient and the doctor.

The patient is not giving up his right to sue. He is only making it contingent on a finding of malpractice by a committee of other specialists in the field.

I will tell you what is needed here is a national 'Do not treat list' of DEmocrats opposing tort reform and the parasite trial laywers.

They can all go to Canada!

With taxes so high, doctors are getting very selective routines and patients they will take on. Very bad indeed.

I would also be for the doctors of a state going on strike.
They are the ones who have sacrificed thier lives for this profession.

If the laywers can do a better in surgery, let them try. HA!

Atlas is shrugging.

What doctors ought to do is go on the offensive and let it be known they're not going to roll over and settle ridiculous lawsuits anymore.

Instead of paying huge premiums to insurance companies whose first response is to settle (therefore encouraging more lawsuits), they ought to pay into a legal defense fund to fight tooth and nail any frivolous lawsuit.

'Dirty little secret' of the malpractice crisis
By Francis J. Collini. M.D.

Francis J. Collini, M.D., F.A.C.S., P.C., is a plastic surgeon practicing in Shavertown, Pa.

Published February 2003

Who is to blame for the medical malpractice crisis in Pennsylvania? Is it the attorneys? Yes, in part. Attorneys advertise in a deceptive fashion and by way of these advertisements, incite patients to sue doctors. Those attorneys who pursue cases which are frivolous in nature and defy the common sense of reasonable people, diminish the integrity and credibility of the honorable men in their profession.

Are insurance companies to blame? Yes, they play a part as well. Insurance companies gouge physicians by increasing malpractice premiums, much of which is used to pay the multimillion-dollar salaries of their CEOs. They do this to compensate for their losses in the stock market and to recover other losses in a legal system gone awry. Should physicians be responsible to pay for this?

Are patients to blame? Patients, too, are partly responsible because they are taken in by deceptive advertising paid for by plaintiff attorneys. Some patients look at malpractice suits as a way to gain a quick buck. And why not, there is nothing to lose. Attorneys do not charge a dime unless they win and, if the doctor wins, he cannot counter-sue for lost time or wages. This is a win-win situation for the plaintiff and the attorney. The system, in its current state, is a jackpot lottery for plaintiff and attorney, the rewards of which can be substantial.

Are the doctors to blame? This is the "dirty little secret" that nobody wants to talk about. Lawsuits against physicians, frivolous or not, would not be filed unless one doctor is willing to testify against another doctor, under oath, for money. You won’t hear lawyers talking about this because they are afraid that doctors will catch on to this "dirty little secret" and lean on their fellow physicians to stop testifying against one another. This could put the malpractice legal system out of business or substantially reduce the number of malpractice cases. You won’t hear doctors talking publicly about this problem because many are embarrassed by their colleagues’ behavior.

Doctors who, under oath, distort medical facts and medical records for the sole purpose of making money are the fuel that sparks the fire of the malpractice crisis. And it works both ways-plaintiff and defendant. Without physicians testifying against other physicians, greedy attorneys would have no cases, judges would hear no frivolous lawsuits and juries would not have to make decisions regarding medical facts that they know little about. Try to find a lawyer who will sue another lawyer. It’s real tough. There is an unwritten law among lawyers that simply states that they will not rat on a fellow colleague. No such unwritten law exists among fellow physicians. If the price is right, some unethical physicians will sell their soul and hence, their integrity to the devil.

I was recently victorious in a medical malpractice lawsuit filed against me in Philadelphia by a patient who I operated on in Wilkes-Barre. Despite the fact that the venue laws have changed in Pennsylvania, I had to travel to Philadelphia twice daily for seven working days to fight this lawsuit. It took the jury just fifteen minutes to come to verdict in my favor.

Can I counter-sue for my time, lost wages and the fact that my malpractice insurance premiums jumped out of sight because the insurance company had to defend me in this lawsuit (to the tune of $46,000)? No! The system does not allow for this. My losses are not recognized as an injury. The system does not view the defending physician as the real victim in such cases. This is inherently unfair.

I do not blame the opposing attorney, nor do I blame the patient for filing this lawsuit. I do not even blame the judge for allowing this case to go forward. The simple truth is that this case would never have gone forward had it not been for the board certified plastic surgeon who agreed to testify against me for money. He was paid handsomely for his testimony. He distorted the medical facts of the case to create a story filled with mischaracterizations and half-truths. Fortunately, good documentation and my strong rebuttal testimony allowed the jury to see through this charade and the members found verdict in my favor.

What is the solution to the expert witness problem? One solution is for each specialty to create a panel of physicians who issue a "certificate of merit" similar to a certificate of board certification to those physicians who qualify to become an expert witness in their respective field. Those physicians who desire to obtain a "certificate of merit" as an expert witness must pass qualifying written and perhaps even oral examinations to ensure their credibility and integrity. Recertification could be done every five to 10 years. Physicians who receive a "certificate of merit" can either donate their time or receive predetermined reasonable monetary compensation for their time and expenses.

As it stands now, expert witnesses receive exorbitant fees for their testimony and this can bias their opinions of medical facts so as to suit the fancy of the attorney who is paying them. By establishing a "certificate of merit" for expert witnesses, bias and discrimination can be diminished and the number of frivolous lawsuits could drop. Furthermore, certified physician experts would maintain respect among their peers.

Monetary compensation for expert witness testimony dilutes the integrity and credibility of all physicians. It is bad for society as a whole and even worse for medicine. Physicians such as the one who testified against me are dangerous. By way of their clouded testimony, the esteem and respect that people have for physicians is damaged. As physicians, we must place ourselves above this type of denigration. It seems morally and ethically reprehensible for physicians to make part or all of their living by accepting money for expert witness testimony.

We blame others for the causation of the medical malpractice crisis when, in fact, we contribute by testifying against one another. We must censure those unethical, greedy physicians who testify against other physicians solely for the purpose of making money. We, as a society of physicians (the AMA included), have turned a blind eye to this sector of our profession and as a result, we have tacitly accepted this behavior. It is time we take a firm stand against these physicians.

Tort reform is also essential to squelch the malpractice crisis. Without tort reform, plaintiffs’ lawyers and disgruntled patients will look upon the legal system as a jackpot lottery. Simply file a lawsuit, hope that an expert witness can be found and a jury persuaded against the treating physician. Given the right set of circumstances, frivolous lawsuits can be won and substantial awards provided. Many of these awards are unjustified. Capping awards is necessary for the future of medicine. It will deter frivolous lawsuits; it will maintain reasonable compensation for victims and allow the medical profession to go forward, minimizing the departure of physicians from Pennsylvania.

Am I saying malpractice does not exist? Of course not. It does and victims must be reasonably compensated. But why is it okay for the workman’s compensation insurance board to cap awards for work-related injuries and not okay for the malpractice insurance board to cap awards for doctor-related negligence cases? Why the double standard? Work-related finger injuries are compensated a certain amount, arm injuries another amount and so on. Why not the same or something similar for doctor-related injuries? Because there is too much money at stake. Billions of dollars, part of which plaintiff attorneys take home.

Reasonable tort reform can start at $250,000 for pain and suffering; it can be adjusted with inflation each year. This cap on pain and suffering will not include medical costs. Medical costs will continue to be covered by malpractice insurance. Why is this not reasonable? Plaintiff attorneys do not want tort reform because it would directly cut into their take of the loot. Once again, greed and money negatively influence the behavior of reasonable men.

In summary, the three things that, in my opinion, would greatly diminish the malpractice crisis in Pennsylvania are the following:

• Establish a "certificate of merit" for expert witnesses.

• Predetermined, reasonable compensation for expert witness testimony.

• Tort reform with reasonable caps on pain and suffering.

Failing to do something about doctors who make their living testifying against other doctors will call into question the integrity of the medical profession as a whole. Failing to put limits on pain and suffering will foster and perpetuate frivolous lawsuits. The above suggestions are necessary for the survival of the medical community.

As Wendell Phillips said, circa 1884: "Revolutions are not made; they come. A revolution is as natural a growth as an oak. It comes out of the past. Revolutions never go backward."

Free Offer! Get Daily News Briefs by Email

© 1996-2003, Physician's News Digest, Inc. All rights reserved.

The doctors are guilty, the lawyers are guilty, the insurance companies are guilty

Delaware Valley Edition Texas Edition Western PA Edition Recruitment
Cover Story Cover Story Cover Story CME
Spotlight Interview Spotlight Interview Spotlight Interview Discussion
News Briefs News Briefs News Briefs Email
Editor's Notebook Medicine & Computers Editor's Notebook Search
Commentary Medicine & the Law Commentary Archives
Medicine & Computers Medicine & Business Medicine & Computers About PND
Medicine & the Law Personal Finance Medicine & the Law Advertising
Medicine & Business Medicine & Business List Rentals
Personal Finance Personal Finance Subscriptions