Intentional torts claims in medical cases

Civil liability legislation enacted in each Australian jurisdiction following the Ipp Report recommendations created a clear divide between "negligence" and "intentional" torts. The common law action for trespass to the person is to varying extents maintained in the approaches taken by the State and Territory legislatures. This article explores the potential application of intentional torts claims in a medical context in light of recent case law. It identifies advantages for plaintiffs who plead intentional tort claims, including onus of proof, causation, remoteness, the quantum of compensatory damages and the availability of aggravated and exemplary damages.     

Variation in the growth and incidence of medical malpractice claims

This study analyzes the incidence of medical malpractice claims since 1976, using data drawn from the 1982 core survey of the American Medical Association's Socioeconomic Monitoring System. The data show that, on average, physicians incurred twice as many claims per year in the years 1976 to 1981 as they did during their careers prior to that period. Using Tobit analysis, we find the annual frequency of claims to be greater among surgeons, obstetricians and gynecologists (OBGs), physicians in group practice, and physicians in states which apply the legal doctrine of informed consent. In addition, we find that the number of years since medical residency is positively related to physicians' claims incidence during the first 27 years of practice, and that OBGs and medical specialists who spend more time with their patients per office visit incur fewer claims.     

The medical examiner and AIDS. Death certification, safety procedures, and future medicolegal issues

The current worldwide epidemic of AIDS will have profound consequences not only for the delivery of health care, but also for forensic pathologists and investigators. AIDS continues to spread in definable risk groups, and deaths within some of these groups may fall under the jurisdiction of the medical examiner. We outline an approach to handling AIDS deaths based upon case definition, diagnosis by available information and procedures, and proper infection control. We also discuss medicolegal issues surrounding deaths due to AIDS.     

Recovering fraudulent claims for Australian federal expenditure on pharmaceuticals and medical devices

The Australian Federal Government expends increasingly large amounts of money on pharmaceuticals and medical devices. It is likely, given government experience in other jurisdictions, that a significant proportion of this expenditure is paid as a result of fraudulent claims presented by corporations. In the United States, legislation such as the False Claims Act 1986 (US), the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act 2009 (US), the Stark (Physician Self-Referral) Statute 1995 (US), the Anti-Kickback Statute 1972 (US), the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act 1938 (US), the Social Security Act 1965 (US), and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 2010 (US) has created systematic processes allowing the United States Federal Government to recover billions of dollars in fraudulently made claims in the health and procurement areas. The crucial component involves the creation of financial incentives for information about fraud to be revealed from within the corporate sector to the appropriate state officials. This article explores the opportunities for creating a similar system in Australia in the health care setting.     

The moral status of wrongful life claims

A wrongful life action is a claim brought by a disabled child who asserts that but for a physician's negligence he or she would not have been born, thereby being spared the suffering of life. The action is inherently controversial because the alternative to an impaired life is non-existence. Lord Griffiths has described such claims as 'utterly offensive; there should be rejoicing that the hospital's mistake bestowed the gift of life upon the child.' This paper cuts through the rhetoric that the debate has generated and analyses whether there is a sound doctrinal basis for recognizing wrongful life actions.     

Effects of tort reforms on the value of closed medical malpractice claims: a microanalysis

Tort reforms enacted by state legislatures mainly seek to reduce the rate of increase in medical malpractice insurance premiums and other costs of the professional liability system, such as "defensive medicine." We examine the effects tort reforms enacted during the 1970s have had on the probability that a claim will be paid, the amount of payment, and the speed with which the claim is resolved. Claims frequency is not used as a variable in this analysis, but findings from other studies pertaining to frequency are noted. This study uses two closed claims databases--one from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and one from the U.S. General Accounting Office. We merged the two data sets for purposes of this analysis. The observational unit was the individual claim. Data on tort reforms came from our own analysis of statutory changes by state. Dollar ceilings on recoveries ("caps") are shown to be the strongest reforms in terms of their impact on paid claim size. Most caps limit recovery for noneconomic loss, though some limit dollar awards. Other reforms that reduced payments per claim were costs awardable provisions and mandatory collateral offsets.     

浅谈四级医疗事故的判定

四级医疗事故系指“造成患者明显人身损害的其他后果的医疗事故”,由于所涉及的情形较多,《医疗事故分级标准（试行）》中列举的情形较少,有的不够严谨,给专家鉴定带来困难,笔者同时结合实践经验和个人理解,提出四级医疗事故的判定原则.     

浅谈四级医疗事故的判定

四级医疗事故系指“造成患者明显人身损害的其他后果的医疗事故”,由于所涉及的情形较多,《医疗事故分级标准(试行)》中列举的情形较少,有的不够严谨,给专家鉴定带来困难,笔者同时结合实践经验和个人理解,提出四级医疗事故的判定原则。     

Administrative "health courts" for medical injury claims: the federal constitutional issues

Our article analyzes whether the federal government may constitutionally supplant a traditional system of common-law trials before state judges and juries with new federal institutions designed by statute for compensating victims of medical injuries. Specifically, this article examines the federal constitutional issues raised by various proposals to replace traditional medical malpractice litigation in state courts with a federal system of administrative "health courts." In doing so, we address the following constitutional issues: 1. Is there federal authority to preempt state law (the commerce clause and spending clause issues)? 2. May jurisdiction be created in non-article 3 tribunals, and may claims be decided without trial by jury (the separation of powers and Seventh Amendment issues)? 3. Would pilot programs that require some claims to be pursued in a federal administrative forum while other claimants are left to pursue traditional state tort law remedies be constitutional (the equal protection issue)? The article concludes that a federal compensation system through administrative health courts should be constitutional provided the statute is appropriately drafted and that appropriate factual findings are made concerning the benefits to patients and the public as well as to doctors and their insurers.     

论侵害债权制度

我国合同法并未规定侵害债权制度,但是侵害债权的现象在社会生活中是客观存在的,而且在理论上也是成立的。合理适用该制度有助于保护债权人利益,维护交易安全,减少不正当竞争行为,因此,有必要构建合理的侵害债权制度,以达到债权人、债务人、第三人之间的利益平衡。     

The Australian legal framework for stress claims

Work-related stress claims in all Australian jurisdictions are the most expensive form of workers compensation claim. This is due to the lengthy period of absence from work which is a feature of stress-related claims. In Australia, in the last decade, attempts have been made to reduce the costs of stress-related claims by imposing special legislative thresholds on such claims. This "back end" approach to cost reduction has resulted in an array of legislative formulae designed to reduce the number of stress claims. This article surveys the range of legislative approaches adopted in Australia to deal with the rise in stress claims.     

正阳县医疗机构消毒监测结果分析

目的：了解正阳县医疗机构消毒工作状况,为提高消毒质量提供科学依据。方法：按卫生部（《消毒技术规范》和《医院消毒卫生标准》GB15982—1995执行。结果：2005～2007年样品合格率依次为70．65％、85．97％、92．60％。结论：正阳县医疗机构消毒效果（质量）合格率呈逐年上升趋势,但仍存在一些问题,卫生行政部门和疾控机构应加大监督和监测力度。     

物上请求权的诉权与物权基础

一、问题意识 自<民法通则>中规定"民事责任"这一章至今已有二十余载.是否保留这一中国特色,在物权法起草过程中,又成为焦点.赞成民事责任立法者提出不规定物上请求权,将之并入侵权法,在侵权责任编专节规定侵权责任形式,其中规定一条:停止侵害、排除妨碍、消除危险、返还财产不以侵害人有过错为要件.