“I need to ensure that my family has the best medical care possible.”

“What are the right questions to ask my health care provider to make sure the proper steps are being taken and treatment is not being dictated by some insurance company?”

the thoughts of empowered individuals that understand the importance of patient safety.

Why do we need a renewed call for patient safety? The current medical system fails to protect patients from doctors know to have poor safety records. New York state alone has nearly 600 uninsurable doctors – most of whom continue to see patients on a regular basis. Further, the lack of accountability and consistent record keeping of doctors’ past performances hinders a patient’s ability to know who is treating them and how good the doctor is.

In turn, patients can unknowingly enter dangerous situations when admitted to the hospital. Doctors are required to perform a “differential diagnosis,” a comprehensive list of all possible causes for a patient’s symptoms which permits elimination of possibilities as tests are done to rule out the most dangerous possibilities until the correct diagnosis is confirmed by objective testing. But in some instances doctors rely on their own experience, missing important tests and signs. Compounding the situation, doctors and residents often work unreasonably long shifts and often at night, weekends, or on holidays, the less experienced, younger doctors and residents are on duty.

But, medical malpractice is not solely an outcome of bad doctors. The business of medicine can be a hindrance, too. Often, Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and the health insurance community limit doctors’ ability to deliver complete and thorough health care. For instance, HMOs and health insurance providers limit patients’ length of stay in hospitals, instead of letting doctors make the final judgment call on what’s best for the patient. Unfortunately, medical care is often seen solely through the prism of profits and losses. A classic example is when HMOs reduce the reimbursement rate, but increase the number of patients a doctor must see fostering dangerous situations for patients.

Duffy & Duffy, a malpractice firm in Long Island, believes in empowering patients. For years Duffy & Duffy has helped those who suffer from catastrophic injuries sustained through medical negligence – and their families – receive justice. 

An Advocate for Patient Safety

The attorneys at Duffy & Duffy work not only for each individual client, but always with the larger idea in sight that curing medical malpractice starts with patient safety. Through their work, Duffy & Duffy aims to empower patients to know that they have a voice when they encounter situations that do not seem right and highlight the importance of patient safety at every medical junction.

The firm was started when James Duffy and his son, Michael, decided to combine their law practices in 2001. It has grown to become an advocate for patients throughout the five boroughs of New York City and the state. 

“Throughout the years we’ve welcomed some of the state’s most outstanding trial attorneys to assemble a group of litigators prepared to handle the gamut of medical malpractice cases, including those that are extraordinarily complex, to best serve the community and act as their voice in these difficult times,” said Michael Duffy, managing partner. 

Duffy & Duffy’s trial lawyers work together to bring each patient the most knowledgeable team and best outcome possible. The firm’s attorneys are not only experts in matters of the law, but they also take pride in having a team that is extremely well versed in the medical issues that their clients face. This combination has helped the firm win numerous landmark cases and awards for clients through the years, even in many of the state’s notoriously conservative districts.  This includes 2007’s highest medical malpractice verdict in the country, a sum of $109 million for a brain-injured man and his wife.

The Path to Change

In order to empower patients, fundamental changes must occur in how medical treatment is administered.

· The Tort system is supposed to be expensive for the wrongdoer. If there is a bad doctor that is sued, the tort system is supposed to protect patients by making it expensive/difficult for that doctor to practice. Malpractice litigation can advocate for patient’s rights while decreasing the cost of health care because it helps pressure doctors to give better, more thorough care to avoid the impact of long term implications.

· Health care providers cannot be fatigued. Laws on the state or federal level need to be instituted similar to the laws that limit a pilot’s length of shift. When something does not seem right, a patient has the right to speak up.

· Patients should have the right to know what kind of treatment they’re getting. A centralized database with consistent record keeping of a doctor’s track record and legal malpractice claims must emerge to allow patients to properly research their doctor. Duffy & Duffy has handled numerous cases where doctors have not performed a differential diagnosis. If a patient believes their doctor has not been thorough in their examinations and diagnosis, they should feel comfortable asking their doctor how they came to their conclusion.

· Doctors and medical administrators should demand that Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) change their practices and rules. Physicians must be compensated accordingly and must take a stand against the insurance companies healthcare’s big business and require that insurance companies allow doctors to treat patients the best way possible, without worrying about whether it will be covered. If there were fewer bad doctors, and therefore less malpractice, insurance rates for good doctors would be lower.

Those who know they have the right to speak up when they feel something is not right are often the healthiest patients. Duffy added, “Empowering patients to find as much information as possible by asking the right questions and being alert can protect the patient. Vigorous pursuit of justice when a patient has not been empowered protects us all.”

Five Key Steps to Patient Safety

There are approximately 7,000 deaths each year in New York due to avoidable medical errors. However, hospitals and insurance companies across the state continue to seek ways to make these errors more affordable, rather than working to eliminate them. This focus is misguided - the key to lowering costs is to promote patient safety and reduce mistakes – and there are five reasonable approaches to get started.

1. HMO’s and insurance companies need to stop practicing medicine. Too often these companies set limitations on hospital visits and inform physicians which tests they can and cannot perform, all to cut costs. Subsequently, patients are put at risk because they are not receiving the tests they need. Doctors need to be able to provide patients with the care they judge necessary.

2. If a doctor does make a mistake, he or she needs to be able to admit it, rather than conforming to a culture of secrecy and avoiding responsibility. When an error does occur, most families simply want an explanation of what happened to help move on. Moreover, studies show that malpractice claims drop dramatically when a physician admits an error.

3. Hospital personnel should be encouraged to come forward when mistakes occur and create an open forum for acknowledgement. Rather than leading to blame, the medical community can begin to understand where errors originate so it can address the causes and empower patients to avoid them.

4. Physicians need to be properly compensated. If doctors need to see 100 patients in an hour to reach their overhead – leading to short visits with each patient – there is less ability to provide adequate care for the patient. They need to be able to take the time to properly diagnosis and treat a patient.

5. Patients need to be protected against poor doctors. In New York, there are nearly 600 commercially uninsurable doctors currently practicing medicine – and putting patients at great risk. The medical community needs to identify and retrain these physicians. If that is not possible, then their licenses need to be revoked.

If there is a genuine commitment to these five approaches, patient safety will greatly increase. It will lead to a drastic reduction in the incidence of medical malpractice and lawsuits will decrease. The key to fixing the system is not to identify ways to contain costs; the solution is to eliminate the safety risks which create costs in the first place.