Orthopedic surgeons are among the specialists that are most named in malpractice lawsuits, with about half of all physicians sued at least once during their career, according to Medscape's "Malpractice Reports 2021."
Survey results are based on responses from 4,358 physicians in 29 specialties. Data was collected between May 21 and Aug. 28.
Fourteen findings from the survey:
1. Eighty-one percent of orthopedic surgeons reported being named in a malpractice suit, just behind plastic surgeons and general surgeons, who were tied at 83 percent.
2. Fifty-one percent of respondents reported being sued at least once.
3. Failure to diagnose/delayed diagnosis (31 percent), complications from treatment (29 percent) and poor outcome (26 percent) are among the leading reasons physicians face malpractice lawsuits.
4. Surgeons are more likely to be sued because there's not typically a long-term, ongoing relationship between the physician and patient. "The fact that these physicians take on — across the board — high-risk procedures, it places surgeons at higher risk of litigation compared with other specialties," attorney J. Richard Moore told Medscape.
5. In terms of monetary awards, 40 percent of physicians said the plaintiff in their case received up to $100,000, while 4 percent reported sums of more than $2 million.
6. Eleven percent of specialists pay $30,000 or more for malpractice insurance premiums, with 14 percent paying between $20,000 and $29,999.
7. Fifty-four percent of physicians in the survey said they were very surprised by a malpractice lawsuit they had been named in.
8. Pretrial settlements (33 percent), dismissal after a few months (13 percent) and a verdict in favor of the physician (10 percent) are the most common outcomes of malpractice suits for physicians.
9. Thirty-five percent of physicians reported spending more than 40 hours preparing for their defense.
10. Physicians reported the worst feelings or experiences of being sued as:
- Feelings of inadequacy, guilt, loss of confidence or fear
- A constant fear of being sued
- Time spent on the legal process, which took time away from patients
11. If given the chance to change the past, 43 percent of physicians who were sued said they would have done nothing differently.
12. When asked if a lawsuit negatively affected their career, 29 percent of physicians said yes.
13. Twenty-four percent of respondents said they no longer trust patients or treat patients differently as a result of a malpractice lawsuit.
14. Sixty-one percent of physicians said the outcome of a malpractice lawsuit they were named in was fair.