suit for negligence.
In general, most plaintiffs don't allege intentional conduct in a mal-
practice case. Instead, most malpractice cases must show that any
negligence was a result of the provider's "willful and wanton" con-
duct, meaning the provider exhibited a reckless disregard for the safe-
ty of patients. For example, if a provider was under the influence of
an illegal substance and then entered information into the EHR incor-
rectly, it could lead to a willful and wanton conduct malpractice
claim. On the other hand, a claim that alleges a doctor made a simple
copy-and-paste mistake is less likely to be deemed willful and wanton
conduct.
It's usually more difficult to file a successful malpractice suit in
cases where the plaintiff cannot prove the conduct was willful and
wanton. However, keep in mind that these standards vary from state
to state, so a simple typo could still put you at risk of a negligence
lawsuit.
How to protect yourself
Electronic records give providers a quick and easy way to access a
patient's history, prescriptions, lab results and other vital data in a
way physical records never could. Nevertheless, clinicians must
remain diligent in their review of entered data on a patient-by-patient
basis.
Stress to staff members and physicians that they must observe
care while entering information into the EHRs. They should dou-
ble-check for accuracy data that is automatically filled into the
EHR via auto-populating forms or templates. It is also recommend-
ed that you designate someone in your facility to routinely review
updated EHRs for errors and to ensure that the software is work-
ing smoothly.
Medical Malptractice
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