Claims

Healthcare professionals often face an uncertain claims environment. Our strong record of taking a high number of cases to jury verdict (where environments allow) and winning proves our long-term commitment to you. Your Ob-Gyn Risk Alliance coverage program gives you the control to have your good medicine defended and not settled—where allowed by law.
 
If you are insured through a program without an important patient safety component, you are likely exposing yourself to a higher risk of claims. A claim means losing practice productivity to the legal system. And the attendant mental anguish is, in the words of one physician, “beyond anything I could have imagined; it was incredibly hard on me, my family, and my practice.”
 

Ob-Gyn Defense Specialists & Expert Defense Counsel

Some physicians view professional liability insurance as a commodity and then find out—when it’s time to defend their good medicine—that it is not. A professional liability insurance policy is the most expensive piece of paper you’ll ever buy. With ProAssurance, your policy carries the commitment to be there when you need it. You cannot, unfortunately, change your purchase decision at the point when you have a claim against you.
 
So choose the program that provides an unfettered defense—and gives you the control to have your good medicine defended and not settled—where allowed by law. This RPG program, through ProAssurance, provides such a defense.
 
The vast majority of physicians experience at least one claim during their careers, with most physicians experiencing more than one claim. If payment on a claim is in order, ProAssurance has the financial stability and resources to pay a fair settlement promptly.
 
We understand the hit to your reputation when your good medicine is not defended. In the great majority of cases, our vigorous defense vindicates your good medicine. Our actions help give you more control over your identity and your defense. In addition, we help you experience less uncertainly throughout the process.
 

ADHD & Perinatal Hypoxic Ischemic Events—The New Plaintiffs’ Frontier?

Author: Laura L. Witty, Esquire

In 2008 four to twelve percent of children in the United States between five and 17 years of age were diagnosed with ADHD. The national annual cost of ADHD-related illnesses in children under 18 was estimated to be between $38 and $52.4 billion. This staggering figure doesn’t include the cost of care for other mental and physical conditions commonly linked to ADHD. Children diagnosed with ADHD often require intensive medical care along with specialized social and educational services¹.

The Journal of Pediatrics reports that the prevalence and chronic nature of ADHD—combined with rising healthcare costs—makes ADHD-related treatment “a public health priority.” In December 2012 a retrospective study¹ investigated the association between ischemic hypoxic conditions (IHCs) and ADHD, indicating “the role of IHCs in the development is unexplored.” The authors hypothesized that if independent risk factors for ADHD—such as IHCs—could be identified, this could lead to early diagnoses when treatment is more effective. They further suggested that early diagnosis could lead to possible interruption of “modifiable” clinical conditions, such as preeclampsia and fetal asphyxia, which may be risk factors for ADHD. The authors concluded that IHCs, “especially birth asphyxia,” are strongly and independently associated with the increased risk of ADHD.

These unproven assertions create new concerns for physicians, hospitals, and professional liability insurance carriers. The study implies that not only are labor and delivery events strongly associated with ADHD, but that ADHD may be avoidable in some circumstances. These conclusions open the door to an extension of causation theories and damages in birth-related injury cases.

You and your defense counsel should be prepared to challenge the scientific basis and reliability of this study, which may be employed by plaintiffs’ attorneys, especially in cases where damages are uncertain.

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Laura Witty is a Partner at Kitch, Drutchas, Wagner, Valitutti & Sherbrook, where she is a member of the Birth Trauma Team and National Coordinating Counsel Team. For more than 40 years, The Kitch Firm, with nearly 100 attorneys and six offices in the Great Lakes region, has been committed to meeting the legal needs of healthcare providers nationwide.

Copyright © 2013 Kitch, Drutchas, Wagner, Valitutti & Sherbrook; posted here with permission.

¹ Getahun D, Rhoads GG, Demissie K, Lu SE, In utero exposure to ischemic-hypoxic conditions and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Pediatrics. 2012; 131(1): 53-61.