BUSI 506 Alternative Dispute Resolution An Option for Medical Malpractice Cases

BUSI 506 - Legal and Ethical Issues for Health Professionals

Alternative Dispute Resolution: An Option for Medical Malpractice Cases

Eric Lopez

March 2, 2022

Respectfully submitted to: Professor Kippenhan

Medical malpractice has been a consistent issue over the generations of the established health

care system in the United States of America, and quite frankly will continue to be due to human

error or negligence. The role of a health care professional is to provide the patient population

with evaluation and treatment with the utmost care possible. Although physicians are trained

conventional method of going to court. Ideally, health systems across the United States will use

or at the very least encourage this method for conflict resolution techniques.

Alternative Dispute Resolution: An Option for Medical Malpractice Cases

For many centuries, health care professionals have implemented policies and procedures and

developed impeccable standards in order to appropriately treat a person who is no longer in the

best of physical, mental, or emotional health. The main objective of a health care professional,

from an executive administrator to medical technician (and everything in between), is to care and

serve sick or ill individuals. Physicians, more specifically, are trained with many years in the

education system growing in their knowledge of human anatomy and physiology.

Along with a proper foundation of the human body is an appropriate number of clinical hours to

perfect interpersonal and mechanical skills. That being said, it is vital for physicians to interact

with their patient population in the most appropriate manner involving: proper communication

and standard of care to all. These characteristics in a physician and patient connection are the

Medical Malpractice and Alternative Dispute Resolution

Firstly, medical malpractice is described by Bal (2009) “as any act or omission by a physician

during treatment of a patient that deviates from accepted norms of practice in the medical

A health care professional that causes injury to a patient due to improper implementation of

standard of care. These unfortunate situations are happening all over the country and

"approximately 15,000 to 19,000 medical malpractice suits are filed each year in the United

States" (Shipley, 2018). That being said, patients who are unsatisfied with the outcomes or

perceived that a professional wronged them in some manner during a procedure could be taken

to court, but it does not mean that the health care professional committed medical malpractice.

These sorts of legal suits are somewhat common here in the United States of America. Of course,

with any legal case there must be some sort of resolution in order to ensure that both parties are

compensated, or the perpetrator suffers the appropriate consequences. According to Bal (2009)

there are four essential components that must be proven in order to confirm a medical

$126 billion is spent per year on litigation in medical malpractice. In addition, there are indirect

costs to the healthcare system in the form of defensive medicine, estimated at between $83 and

$151 billion" (Sohn & Bal, 2012). Legal suits for a medical malpractice cases can be resolved by

one of two ways. The first way of resolving the case would be in the form of taking the suit to

court and resolving the manner with a judge. This form of conflict resolution is costly, and also

requires an intense amount of time and effort; not only for the plaintiff but also for the defendant.

Secondly, and also the most common form of conflict resolution not just in medical malpractice

cases but for general lawsuits as well. The term alternative dispute resolution is coined as "a term

that refers to a number of processes that can be used to resolve a conflict, dispute or claim"

(American Bar Association, n.d.). From a legal standpoint, alternative dispute resolution is

sometimes seen as one of the more effective form of settling a legal quarrel.

party individual (American Bar Association, n.d.). So, that being said, what is the benefit from

using this method of legal conflict resolution rather than the original method of taking an

individual to court? Well, the answer is simple. Using mediation in cases that are specifically

compromising in nature would benefit from the lost-cost and time saving method of dispute

resolution. Another reason is that it offers a form of appearance for those who are not necessarily

involved in this situation the opportunity to express themselves in a healthy and productive

manner. As this forum proceeds, it can be noted that the mediator itself is not making the

decisions at the end of the session or during at any point. The mediator will simply be monitoring

and guiding the discussions being made by the two parties. Alternative dispute resolution

accompanied by a mediator allows the two parties involved to come to an agreement, as well as

come to an emotional and mental closure. This closure is primarily accredited to the dialogue

that is occurring during the sessions. Of course, if no agreement can be made then at that point

this forum will be moved to an actual court proceeding where there will be no more discussion

and more of a lengthy and costly trial. Another major aspect of this form of dispute resolution is

the component of creativity. During the more traditional litigation, we would find that the

Perspective

After reviewing all of the information and conclusions of other scholars, alternative dispute

resolution has become a common option for settling legal disputes. Medical malpractice cases

are accruing all throughout the year and can become extremely costly for a local health system as

well as for the patient involved. Although a budget is set in place in order to defend a health

Resolution in Health Care, p.221). Executive leadership are called to maintain order and guide

the employee population towards achieving the overall goal of serving the community in the best

way possible. Encouraging alternative dispute resolution with mediation could become cost

effective for both parties involved in a dispute.

care for all patients, coworkers, and leadership. When it comes to conflict resolution, a biblical

worldview would support the idea of a speedy and selfless confrontation. Matthew 18:15-17

says, "if your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If

they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others

along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses'" This

is a great reminder not just for Christians, but for all health care professionals, to be ready to

confront wrongdoers in an appropriate manner. By addressing these situations in a manner that is

cost-effective for both parties and compensates most of the demands of the individuals involved,

a proper resolution could be achieved. Medical malpractice cases are a real ordeal here in the

United States of America, and our patients should be served at the highest standard of care. It is

References

American Bar Association. (n.d.). Dispute Resolution Processes. Retrieved January 30, 2019,

From https://www.americanbar.org/groups/dispute_resolution/resources/DisputeResolutionProc

February 28, 2019, from https://www.abpla.org/what-is-malpractice Bal, B. S. (2009). An

introduction to medical malpractice in the United States. Clinical Orthopaedics and Related

Research, 467(2), 339-347.

Coben, J. R. (2007). An Intentional Conversation About Conflict Resolution in Health Care.

Kessler, D. P. (2011). Evaluating the medical malpractice system and options for reform. Journal

of Economic Perspectives,25 (2), 93-110.

Sohn, D. H., & Bal, B. S. (2012). Medical malpractice reform: the role of alternative dispute

resolution.

Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research®, 470 (5), 1370-1378.