It’s no secret that medical malpractice costs the healthcare system billions of dollars every year—from insurance costs to paid claims to legal fees—not to mention the toll it takes on physicians and patients. Part of stopping malpractice is identifying why it happens and where it happens most often. A new study from medical liability insurer Coverys is hoping to do just that for emergency department claims.
The report, “A Dose of Insight — Emergency Department Risks: Through the Lens of Liability Claims” is based on an analysis of ED-related closed medical professional liability claims at Coverys across a five-year period from 2014 to 2018.
Overall, the report shows that EDs are the fourth-most common to trigger a malpractice claim in healthcare settings—potentially making this a huge area of concern.
