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Medical Jurisprudence

University of Massachusetts School of Law

Malpractice

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Law

Extracting Medical Injury Information From The Legal System To Improve Patient Safety In The Health System: A Social Utility Approach, Mary Chaffee Nov 2016

Extracting Medical Injury Information From The Legal System To Improve Patient Safety In The Health System: A Social Utility Approach, Mary Chaffee

University of Massachusetts Law Review

As many as 400,000 people die each year, and a million are injured, by preventable medical injuries sustained in the U.S. health system. Collection of data to enhance understanding of how unintended medical injuries happen is an essential part of harm-reduction strategies. While health system data collection and reporting processes have improved in recent years, the scope and intractability of the medical injuries problem demands new efforts. The legal system could contribute valuable medical injury data to patient safety efforts but current practices largely prevent it. In medical malpractice claims where parties settle, case information is routinely protected from disclosure …


Say Sorry And Save: A Practical Argument For A Greater Role For Apologies In Medical Malpractice Law, Matthew Pillsbury Dec 2014

Say Sorry And Save: A Practical Argument For A Greater Role For Apologies In Medical Malpractice Law, Matthew Pillsbury

University of Massachusetts Law Review

This article examines both the potential benefits and detriments of the use of an apology in a legal setting. This article uses the specific environment surrounding a medical malpractice case to help illustrate how and why an apology should or should not be proffered by the Defendant. Ultimately, the reader of this article should have a solid understanding of how an apology can be admissible as evidence in the litigation of a medical malpractice lawsuit.


On Apology, Robert Ward Dec 2014

On Apology, Robert Ward

University of Massachusetts Law Review

On February 16, 2006, Dr. Aaron Lazare, Dean and Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, addressed an assembly at the Southern New England School of Law on his critically acclaimed book entitled: “On Apology!” According to Dr. Lazare, to be an effective apology, there must be acknowledgement, remorse, explanation and reparation. Dr. Lazare advances the hypothesis that the current proliferation of cases in our legal system is predicated on the concept that often the aggrieved party was not the beneficiary of an effective apology. In the context of the patient-physician relationship, an effective apology means telling the patient …