Judge's innovation may offer malpractice fix

WASHINGTON -- Part listening, part cajoling, an innovative approach to resolving medical malpractice cases could become a model for courts around the country thanks to a pioneering judge who invested his own time in learning about medicine.

The Obama administration is spending $3 million to see if the methods developed by longtime New York judge Douglas McKeon can work on a broader scale, opening a way around the political stalemate over how to reform the medical liability system.

A senior appellate judge, McKeon named his approach "judge-directed negotiations." But he also calls it "humanness." Curiosity about medical matters led him to become a specialist in resolving wrenching cases that involve life-changing harm to patients.

Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2010/06/21/1316431/judges-innovation-may-offer-malpractice.html#ixzz0rgXCssA4

...following a serious medical error.

1. Acknowledgement it occurred.

2. An apology.

3. A sincere effort to improve.


Studies show that offering these three things to patients/loved ones after an incident often satisfies them. Medical professionals, particularly physicans, are loathe to admit their errors.

Tort reform is clearly NOT the answer.