Study Set Content:
Plaintiff is awarded damages only if his or her negligence is equal to or less than the defendant's negligence.
Modified
Plaintiff is awarded damages only if his or her negligence is considered "slight" and the defendant's negligence is "gross.“
Slight Gross
COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE CASE SCENARIOS
Failing to Disclose Medications
• Sue comes into the emergency room with heart problems. Sue’s doctor asks for her family health history but does not ask Sue if she is currently taking any medications. Sue thought that she should tell her doctor about her blood pressure medication, but she does not because he did not ask. The doctor prescribes a new medication, and one-week later Sue suffers a stroke as a result of a reaction between her blood pressure medication and her new medication.
o standard of care: doctors are required to ask patients about their personal health history
o Patients are required to actively participate in their ow
Failing to Follow Doctor’s Orders
Mark broke his wrist and went to see his doctor to get a cast. The doctor told Mark to wear the cast for six weeks and refrain from any heavy lifting. Five weeks into healing, Mark decides to help a friend move but hurts his wrist when picking up a heavy box. At the doctor’s office Mark finds out that though he failed to follow his doctor’s orders, his wrist had not been healing properly anyway because the doctor incorrectly set the bones.
Plaintiff assumes the risk involved in an obviously dangerous activity but proceeds to engage in the activity anyway, he or she may not be able to recover damages for injuries
ASSUMPTION OF RISK
Plaintiff has voluntarily accept the risk involved in the activity
ASSUMPTION OF RISK
Case scenario
human subjects involved in clinical trials, patient undergoing surgery
indicates that where the negligence of two (2) or more defendants concurs to cause a
CONCURRENT NEGLIGENCE
Example cases
o Medical malpractice action where two doctors were subject to same standard of care and both failed to diagnose cancer.
o Negligence of nurse preceded alleged negligence of doctor who could have intervened to prevent injury.
is the attribution of liability on one person for the actions of another
VICARIOUS LIABILITY
a pharmacist could become associated with professional liability actions as part of a case against a hospital or physician
Through the doctrine of vicarious liability
have been found negligent for the negligence of nurses, therapists, and others working under their supervision.
Physicians
no cases were found where ____ were found negligent from the negligence of pharmacists working under them.
physicians
he or she would also be held liable if a patient suffers because the search was deficient or the information incorrect.
If a physician requests DI
a federal court ruled that the doctrine of informed consent required a physician to furnish a patient contemplating pregnancy with information concerning the teratogenicity of the phenytoin she was taking. The physician had a duty to provide information reasonably available in the medical literature, but failed to do so. Even though the physician was not aware of the potential effects of phenytoin, studies were reported in the medical literature. This case represents the only case in which a lack of a literature search resulted in liability.
Harbeson v. Parke Davis
If the physician had requested the pharmacist to search for information about the teratogenicity of phenytoin and no references were found because of a faulty search, the pharmacist would____ together with the physician. The institution would probably also be named as a party in such legal action.
share in the negligence
a pharmacist who has not been personally negligent could be held responsible for the negligence of others.
vicarious liability
Supervision and adequate training of subordinates (e.g., interns, pharmacy technicians, other employees) are
essential.
Incompetence and substandard training of these individuals can lead to
liability.
Methods to protect against lawsuits
o Contracts covering financial agreements
o Adequate documentation
o Disclaimers
o Insurance
