The presentation is designed to walk you through all stages of a malpractice case in order to equip you with the information you need to deal with this common problem. Using a model malpractice case, this guide helps to prepare the physician for the challenges and pitfalls of being a defendant. It begins when the doctor is notified about the initiation of a malpractice case, explains the elements of a malpractice case, describes the claim, and introduces the people involved in bringing the claim and defending the doctor. The presentation describes the depositions and the actual trial.

NUMBER OF CREDIT HOURS: The Harvard Medical School designates this educational activity for a maximum of 2 AMA PRA Category 1 credit(s)™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

COST: $40.00
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OVERALL LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. This course helps to prepare the physician for the challenges and pitfalls of being a defendant, from the earliest stages of a lawsuit to the actual courtroom appearance.
2. Participants will gain an understanding of the legal process, types of witnesses, deposition strategies, areas of possible difficulties, examination and cross-examination

CLINICAL LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. Participants will learn the bases for malpractice litigation
2. Participants will learn the sequence of events in a malpractice case
3. Participants will become familiar with common errors that are made by physicians as defendants
4. Participants will be prepared to collaborate effectively with attorneys

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THOMAS G. GUTHEIL, MD Course Director

Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Co-Director, Program in Psychiatry and the Law, Massachusetts Mental Health Center and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry; Past President of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law; Author, The Psychiatrist in Court: A Survival Guide; The Psychiatrist as Expert Witness and Mastering Forensic Psychiatric Practice: Advanced Strategies for the Expert Witness; Co-author, The Clinical Handbook of Psychiatry and the Law; Co-author, Divided Staffs, Divided Selves, A Case Approach to Mental Health Ethics. DISCLOSURE:

MARK J. HAUSER, MD Course Director

Clinical Instructor in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut School of Medicine; Forensic Psychiatrist, Program in Psychiatry and Law, Massachusetts Mental Health Center and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry. DISCLOSURE:

LAWRENCE E. LIFSON, MD Course Director

Lecturer on Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Director of Continuing Education, Massachusetts Mental Health Center and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry; Faculty, Boston Psychoanalytic Institute and Chairman of Continuing Education at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute; Editor, Understanding Therapeutic Action: Psychodynamic Concepts of Cure; Co-Editor, The Mental Health Practitioner and the Law: A Comprehensive Handbook and The Psychology of Investing. DISCLOSURE:

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GRACE HUANG, MD Reviewer

Grace Huang, MD, is the Director of the Office of Educational Technology at the Carl J. Shapiro Institute for Education and Research, a joint venture between HMS and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston. She also works as a hospitalist at BIDMC. She has spent a number of years designing web-based modules on clinical skills, including computer-based case simulations (“virtual patients”), physical diagnosis tutorials, interactive pathophysiology diagrams, and procedure-based instruction. She serves as a consultant to the Association of American Medical Colleges in their initiative to promote scholarship and sharing of educational materials through MedEdPORTAL. Her clinical research interest is in the impact of a formal hospital-based procedure service on complication rates among internal medicine residents. DISCLOSURE: Dr. Huang's spouse works at Pfizer, Inc., and she holds stock options and shares in the same company.

DONALD MEYER, MD Reviewer

Bio and Photo Coming Soon. DISCLOSURE:

MICHAEL MILLER, MD Reviewer

Bio and Photo Coming Soon. DISCLOSURE:

KITT SHAFFER, MD, PH.D. Reviewer

Kitt Shaffer, MD PhD is an Associate Professor of Radiology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital, co-director of the Human Body HMS Anatomy course and clerkship director for core and elective Radiology at BWH. She received her MD degree from Tufts and her PhD degree in Anatomy from the University of Kansas in 1983. She completed Radiology residency at New England Medical Center, and a fellowship in Thoracic Radiology at BWH, joining the staff there in 1989. She became Clinical Director of Radiology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in 1992 and Director of Medical Student Education in Radiology at BWH and DFCI in 1996. Her interests focus on online and digital teaching methods. She is an Associate Editor for the journal Radiology and an editor for the online journal eMedicine. She has written on topics in medical student education and oncologic imaging and served as a frequent visiting professor in Radiology as well as a popular invited speaker at the national level. DISCLOSURE:

ROBERT SIMON, MD Reviewer

Bio and Photo Coming Soon. DISCLOSURE:

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NUMBER OF CREDITS: 2 

Harvard Medical School is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The Harvard Medical School designates this educational activity for a maximum of 2 AMA PRA Category 1 credit(s)™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Upon completion of the course you will get a certificate via e-mail within 2 weeks.

Click the image to view a sample of the certificate

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