Patients dealing with poor medical outcomes and families grieving a loss that follows failed medical interventions may blame health care professionals. Sometimes, they may even file medical malpractice lawsuits.
In scenarios where physicians and other licensed professionals are negligent or fail to meet current professional standards, there may be valid reason to pursue a malpractice lawsuit. However, poor medical outcomes are not necessarily the fault of physicians and other medical professionals.
In some cases, a patient’s refusal to follow medical instructions or inability to consistently adhere to a treatment plan could be the true reason for an unfavorable outcome.
Non-compliant patients are common
Some people have personal, religious or moral objections to certain types of medical care. People oppose medications developed through stem cell research and blood transfusions on religious grounds. They may oppose various types of surgeries due to their own beliefs and fears.
In such cases, they may become non-compliant and outright refuse to follow the treatment plan recommended by a physician. They may either cease treatment or insist on a secondary treatment plan that is likely less effective. In those scenarios, keeping official records of the stated intent not to comply with the treatment plan can help protect the physician.
In other cases, treatment regimens are simply too demanding for patients to follow. They may struggle to take medications on time, commit to exercise regimens or adjust their diets. Proper record keeping and patient education can protect medical professionals from unfair claims of malpractice.
Records can prove that patients made poor choices that undermined the success of treatment, those records could play a critical role in fighting medical malpractice lawsuits. Reviewing malpractice claims with an attorney can help physicians and hospital administrators identify factors that could exonerate an accused physician or medical facility.