Negligent Credentialing by Medical Staff
When it comes to someone’s health and wellbeing, there are very few chances and risks that should be taken.
Sometimes, individuals don’t realize the medical practitioners whom they’re trusting may not be fully qualified to help them with their operations and other treatments. Alternately, a bad outcome may convince a plaintiff that a qualified practitioner was improperly certified for practice.
Whether you’re preparing a negligence case for the plaintiff or defendant, an expert witness is a crucial resource that you should use to your advantage.
OB-GYN Expert Witness Dr. Paul Sinkhorn has the medical and administrative experience that you may need to make a cohesive and convincing case in court and to give your client the fair and just outcome that they deserve.
What is a Negligent Claim in Healthcare?
A healthcare negligence claim maintains that the defendant (hospital, doctor, medical staff, etc.) violated a fundamental standard of care, causing or contributing to the plaintiff’s injuries.
While healthcare negligence claims are defined as a defendant violating care and causing a plaintiff’s injuries, negligence claims can be broad and vary by practice areas. Therefore, each duty in every medical practice is case-specific.
It is most important to understand that negligence is not proven by a poor result, but that result may sometimes be attributed to the actions of a medical practitioner who deviated from the required minimal competent care in that case.
When there’s a negligence claim that is for or against your client in the area of obstetrics and gynecology, Dr. Paul Sinkhorn can help assess medicolegal matters for defensibility or noncompliance with the care standard.
Negligence claims are often very complex in nature and can range from medical malpractice to negligent credentialing to product liability, plus much more in between.
What is Negligent Credentialing in Healthcare?
Medical organizations have an ethical and legal responsibility to properly accredit all of their medical staff members to prevent patient harm and ensure that the staffs’ medical qualifications and practices have been properly reviewed before credentialing.
A charge of negligent credentialing of a practitioner may arise when a patient has been harmed because of malpractice, and there is a question of whether the practitioner should have been admitted to the medical staff, or should have received certain medical privileges.
For example, a medical staff can be found negligent if:
● It failed to follow proper credentialing processes, after having an appropriate system in place (usually by its Bylaws),
● It followed its credentialing process inadequately, committing errors during the process,
● Improper assignment of medical privileges occurred absent adequate qualifications.
Sometimes, it is difficult to determine if a plaintiff’s injuries may have occurred because of negligent credentialing, but an expert in credentialing and privileging like Dr. Sinkhorn can help attorneys with his experience and medical knowledge in this realm.
How an Expert Witness Can Help with Negligent Credentialing
When an expert witness takes part in a negligent credentialing case, they will need to properly explain medical staff credentialing procedure to the jury.
Such administrative matters may seem arcane or confusing to jurors, but Dr. Sinkhorn can explain them in an approachable and clearly understandable fashion.
If you’re an attorney who needs advice in determining an OB-GYN medicolegal or administrative matter for either defensibility or possible noncompliance with the care standard, Dr. Paul Sinkhorn is an expert witness who can provide his expertise and testimony to assist your client.