Medicolegal Sidebar: Legal Immunity for Healthcare Workers During COVID-19

Teo, Wendy; Brenner, Lawrence H.; Bal, B. Sonny

doi:10.1097/corr.0000000000001473

Cited by 3 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 5 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Similarly, concern has been raised that healthcare workers may be subject to undue legal pressures and/or litigation because of caring for a patient cohort outside their area of traditional expertise. 19,20 Although broad protections exist to safeguard providers who act reasonably during this difficult time, a reliance on up-to-date guidelines and treatment protocols is critical to ensure that the best possible care is being provided. 20 Clarity in the types of roles the residents were asked to serve (ie, managing ventilators, serving in the role of an intern for a care team, being a part of the proning teams, etc.)…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resident Wellness During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Nationwide Survey of Orthopaedic Residents

Nolte

Tornetta

Mehta

et al. 2021

J Am Acad Orthop Surg

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the resident workforce to a particularly powerful and unexpected extent. Given the drastic changes to resident roles, expectations, and responsibilities, many valuable lessons regarding resident concerns and wellness can be garnered from this unique experience. Methods: A voluntary survey was sent to 179 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited orthopaedic surgery residency program directors to distribute to their residents. Questions focused on issues that may have occurred, program's responses, and expectations of programs during the pandemic. Results: In total, 507 residents completed the survey, and 10% reported being deployed to do nonorthopaedic-related care, with junior classes being more likely to receive this assignment (P < 0.001). The greatest concern for respondents was the possibility of getting family members sick (mean = 3.89, on scale of 1-5), followed by personally contracting the illness (mean = 3.38). Discussion: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in numerous changes and novel sources of adversity for the orthopaedic surgery resident. Contrary to popular opinion, most residents are comfortable with the proposition of providing nonorthopaedic care. The possibility of bringing a pathogen to the home environment and infecting family members seems to be an overarching concern, and efforts to ensure resident and family safety are key.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resident Wellness During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Nationwide Survey of Orthopaedic Residents

Nolte

Tornetta

Mehta

et al. 2021

J Am Acad Orthop Surg

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the case of the activity carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic, the deficits amplify the stress of the professionals: the medical errors can be determined by the stressful work environment and by existing deficits (Teo et al, 2020). Stress is also amplified by public misunderstanding of limitations and ethical issues raised by lack of resources (Martin-Fumadó et al, 2020).…”

Section: Insufficient Resourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tingle argues that the definition of care standards is flexible enough that isn`t necessary to introduce the altered variant; care standards themselves imply the need for context adaptations (Tingle, 2020). Current practice encourages medical behaviors that are reasonably justified or excusable, guiding court decisions in setting health service standards for each individual case (Teo et al, 2020). Showing the fact in Australia negligence is defined as failure to exercise reasonable care and skills, Kelly indicates that it involves reporting on what the professional community considers a competent practice at a given time (Kelly, 2020).…”

Section: Pandemic Care Standardsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Urgent activities carried out during the pandemic, in conditions different from the standard ones, may not comply with the rules, for practical reasons (Teo et al, 2020). Therefore, as long as a healthcare provider acts reasonably, in good faith and in accordance with medical protocols and guidelines, civil or criminal liability shouldn`t apply to him (Teo et al, 2020).…”

Section: Some Arguments In Favor Of Professional Immunitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Along with a new danger addressed to all citizens, we are witnessing an increase in the risks faced by health professionals during the pandemic (Al-Azri, 2020), some of them aiming the inadequacy of professional responsibility to the concrete conditions of their activity. This asymmetry leads to the situation where the fear of malpractice is a concern for professionals involved in health services, important being both the risk and the distraction that brings with itself (Teo et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Physicians Professional Immunity in the COVID-19 Pandemic. Problems and Solutions

Rotilă

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this article, by professional immunity we refer to limitation of liability to the specific pandemic context, respectively to the concrete possibilities of diagnosis, treatment, care and too few degrees of professional freedom still available. The relevance of one or another of the limitation measures of professional liability depends on the specific legal context of each community. Our thesis is that, regardless of the form of transposition into practice, a form of health professionals protection, such as professional immunity is necessary. From the multitude of possible protection measures, each state can select the appropriate ones. The need for specific measures for professional immunity is not identical in each state, depending on the specifics of the legal system, social values, measures characteristics taken to combat the pandemic, the degree of transparency of each healthcare system, the level of bioethical principles influence. However, this need doesn`t start from "no measure", the appropriate minimum level of protection seemingly to constitute a patient compensation no-fault model, plus the characteristics of the professional immunity, designed to adapt liability to specific conditions. The main problem in the absence of professional immunity is the risk of transferring the cost of ignorance, visible, in the inadequate expectations of medical science, on healthcare professionals, the limits of scientific knowledge risking to be reinterpreted as medical fault. The COVID-19 pandemic has somehow forced an additional step towards broadening discussions on universal human rights, being forced to consider ways of putting them into practice in the context of limited resources. Assuming that the increase in social complexity increases the risks of such events, we approach these problems from the perspective of creating rapid mechanisms to adapt to such changes, the lessons learned now being applied in the future to other similar cases.

show abstract

Romanian Dentists’ Perception of Legal Liability Related to COVID-19 Infection during Dental Treatments in Times of the Pandemic Outbreak

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Our study aimed to describe and assess the impact of legal aspects on dentists’ practices during the COVID-19 pandemic. The objectives were: (a) to explore dentists’ and dental managers’ knowledge about dental liability during the COVID-19 pandemic; (b) to inquire about the respondents’ perceptions of immunity for prejudices resulting from non-urgent dental procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic; and (c) to assess respondents’ “good faith” in handling challenges in the pandemic context. We conducted an observational, cross-sectional, exploratory study based on a survey. The target population was represented by active dentists in Romania from 11 March 2020 to 31 January 2022. An email, professional groups on WhatsApp, and Facebook invitation to participate were sent at the end of January 2022. Data were collected using a self-administrated electronic questionnaire. The responses of sixty-one participants, the majority younger than 41 years (82%) and women (77%), were analyzed. Most respondents (72%) appropriately thought that patients could complain about being infected with COVID-19 during their visits for dental treatment. Most respondents agreed that all dental personnel should benefit from legal immunity (72%). The respondents indicated that clinic or office management is responsible for failing to implement/respect the safety measures and protocols specific to the COVID-19 pandemic (83%). Outcomes showed that the respondents are aware of the possibility of being sued and would not be surprised to see COVID-19 raised in litigation, while the state’s immunity is expected for all dental care personnel, not only dentists.

show abstract

Medicolegal Sidebar: Legal Immunity for Healthcare Workers During COVID-19

Cited by 3 publications

References 5 publications

Resident Wellness During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Nationwide Survey of Orthopaedic Residents

Resident Wellness During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Nationwide Survey of Orthopaedic Residents

Physicians Professional Immunity in the COVID-19 Pandemic. Problems and Solutions

Romanian Dentists’ Perception of Legal Liability Related to COVID-19 Infection during Dental Treatments in Times of the Pandemic Outbreak

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About