I ’ ve had a lot of conversations in tandem with risk management and legal to sit down with a patient and just hear them out , hear what their experience was , as well as say , ‘ We heard you and you are right ; we are so sorry , and this never should have happened , and these are the steps we ’ re taking to make sure that this never happens again .’ Sometimes that ’ s enough . Patients will often say , ‘ I wasn ’ t looking for financial compensation , please don ’ t do this to someone else .”
the overall accessibility , affordability , and quality of healthcare in the United States .”
Kroll offers words of wisdom to infection preventionists who may still find litigation to be unsettling .
“ Don ’ t be scared . This is inherently the legal system , especially if you ’ re an infection preventionist and you don ’ t know a lawyer . You haven ’ t been a lawyer , so it just feels so daunting . But this is a profession , and a piece that you take of it , so don ’ t be daunted by it . Make connections , identify , understand , find the people that make you feel comfortable so you can ask them the questions maybe that you think are dumb questions and ask those folks those questions . Speak up ; you are part of this process and you can assist by speaking up in your organization and say , ‘ I think we ’ re at risk , here ’ s an opportunity ,’ and you have that power to do that work and ultimately , when an organization settles , it ’ s not your fault . You didn ’ t do the wrong thing necessarily , but it really comes down to a bigger risk assessment for the brand integrity , financial integrity , and other things that are outside of the strictly infection prevention lens .”
References :
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Goguen D . Malpractice Liability for Infection Acquired in a Hospital . 2015 . Available at : http :// www . alllaw . com / articles / nolo / medical-malpractice / liabilityinfection-acquired-hospital . html
Hampton JR . Guidelines — for the obedience of fools and the guidance of wise men ? Clin Med 2003 ; 3:279-84 .
Hurwitz B . How does evidence-based guidance influence determinations of medical negligence ? BMJ 2004 ; 329:1024 .
Justia . Evidentiary Standards and Burdens of Proof in Legal Proceedings . Undated . Accessed at : https :// www . justia . com / trials-litigation / lawsuits-and-thecourt-process / evidentiary-standards-and-burdens-of-proof /
Kennerly M . Proving Negligent Hospital-Acquired Infection Through Bacterial Genes . 2012 . Available at : http :// www . litigationandtrial . com / 2012 / 08 / articles / attorney / medical-malpractice-1 / nosocomial-infection
Meier BM , Stone PW , Gebbie KM . Public Health Law for the Collection and Reporting of Healthcare-Associated Infections . Am J Infect Control . 2008 ; 36:537 – 551 . doi : 10.1016 / j . ajic . 2008.01.015 .
Pyrek KM . Legal Liability for HAIs : Understanding Infection Prevention ’ s Role in
Risk Management . ICT . 2016 . Sheridan B . Legal Issues . APIC Text . Updated Feb . 14 , 2024 . Siracusa M , Scuri S , Grappasonni I . Healthcare Acquired Infections : Malpractice and Litigation Issues . Ann . Ig . Med . Prev . Comunità 2019 ; 5:496 – 506 . doi : 10.7416 / ai . 2019.2310
Treglia M , Pallocci M , Passalacqua P , Sabatelli G , De Luca L , Zanovello C , Messineo A , Quintavalle G , Cisterna AM , Marsella LT . Medico-Legal Aspects of Hospital-Acquired Infections : 5-Years of Judgements of the Civil Court of Rome .
Healthcare ( Basel ). 2022 Jul 18 ; 10 ( 7 ): 1336 .
HSPA provides education , certification and advocacy to the Sterile Processing community , along with the unsurpassed support that only a full-service membership organization can bring .
Visit myhspa . org for more information .
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