edge_w Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Okay, here's a tough one. You're working on your first day in clinic, and, you make a horrible mistake and a couple's newborn baby is killed as a result. What do you tell the parents? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon01 Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 What is 'the truth' for 500 Alex... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimmyMax Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Hey, Don't forget to call the CMPA first! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Don't admit guilt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UBCGuy Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Don't admit guilt. Tell them that you just commited professional suicide and that they are welcome to take your balls (if you are a gentleman) as well, at this point you are so far gone it doesn't even matter... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eise Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 Don't admit guilt. On a more serious note, you should tell the parents what happened. But do not admit negligence. Just explain the situation and hopefully the parents will appreciate your honesty, and probably still sue your ass. Personally, if it was me, I think I would slip out of the room and hope no one notices Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted February 7, 2007 Report Share Posted February 7, 2007 On a more serious note, you should tell the parents what happened. But do not admit negligence. Just explain the situation and hopefully the parents will appreciate your honesty, and probably still sue your ass. Personally, if it was me, I think I would slip out of the room and hope no one notices I was pretty serious though. Obviously, it's just one aspect, but an important one. They like to think doctors don't make mistakes...because you know, doctors are superhuman. Reminds me of how one time I told a girl she was pregnant and she wasn't. Luckily, I realized my mistake BEFORE she left to get an abortion. I apologized profusely, and they were pretty cool with that....but I still wanna fall through the ground every time I recall this. *falls through ground* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Law Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I'd just come clean with it. I don't think I could ever live with myself if I ever did something like that. Just be careful, mistakes do happen... doctors are human. As Timmy said, make sure you talk to the CMPA first though... they would help you out. I think our society likes to ignore the fact that doctors can't be correct ALL the time. We'd like to think that they are, since doctors deal with peoples' lives on a daily basis, but unfortunately (or fortunately?) to be human is to err. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muchdutch Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I don't think I could ever live with myself if I ever did something like that. I don't really know the stats, but I'm sure it's more likely to happen to you at least once in your career than never at all - think of all of the medical negligence/misconduct cases that go on that nobody reports, are kept behind closed doors, are covered up. While I'd like to think this doesn't happen, it happens in every other profession (business, education, law, within academia, etc.) so I'm sure it happens in meds too (with a lot higher consequences). And besides, it's not like you make the call to go for that mistake (at least I hope not!). Doesn't it usually come down to a judgement call, where one outcome is the perfect one, and the other is disastrous? As long as it's not a conscious decision, I think you'd be okay knowing you did the best that you could in that circumstance with your training. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tallguy408 Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I agree. Everyone is human and therefore capable of mistakes. Talk to the CMPA, and tell the parents what happened. Do not admit negligence or guilt. While you may think that you made the mistake, it could easily have been something else. Maybe an error on their chart was what caused you to take your errant action for example. Also, muchdutch is right. You are likely to make one or even a few mistakes in your career (although I would not say the majority of physicians are likely to make a fatal mistake in their career). Be as honest and forthcoming as you can, and allow the appropriate authorities determine whether you were at fault or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Law Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I don't really know the stats, but I'm sure it's more likely to happen to you at least once in your career than never at all - think of all of the medical negligence/misconduct cases that go on that nobody reports, are kept behind closed doors, are covered up. Oh yeah, I should clarify... by saying "I don't think I could live with myself" I meant that if I lied to the parents. I don't think I would be able to do that. Also, I don't think "fatal" mistakes are very common... but I do agree that people are bound to make some mistakes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted February 8, 2007 Report Share Posted February 8, 2007 I don't really know the stats, but I'm sure it's more likely to happen to you at least once in your career than never at all - think of all of the medical negligence/misconduct cases that go on that nobody reports, are kept behind closed doors, are covered up. While I'd like to think this doesn't happen, it happens in every other profession (business, education, law, within academia, etc.) so I'm sure it happens in meds too (with a lot higher consequences). I remember a report on the Fairview chain of hospitals in Minneapolis/St. Paul and they said that 10 years ago smth like 9% of their hospital deaths were due to physician mistakes, negligence, etc (I'm surprised they released these facts to the public)....and their goal was to take it down to 3% or something. I wonder if it's still available online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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