Case of the Month: Jury Awarded $19.7 Million in a Pennsylvania Medical Malpractice Suit Despite Patient Negligence October 19, 2023 Alert, General 0 Diagnostic delays are not generally caused by one individual factor, but by multiple system factors that can impact clinical decision-making. A recent "Case of the Month," published by the Cooperative of American Physicians (CAP), cautions that despite patients' lack of follow through, physicians can still be held accountable for diagnostic delays: In 2012, a patient presented to her primary care physician (PCP) with complaints of mid-back pain and tingling in her ribcage that lasted six days. The PCP informed the patient to monitor her back symptoms and to notify him if her symptoms worsened or failed to improve. In March 2014, the patient saw her PCP with complaints of fatigue and back pain that occasionally woke her up. At the beginning of 2016, the patient reported tingling and sensory changes in her right foot and the PCP referred the patient to a podiatrist. However, despite the referral, the patient did not see the podiatrist until seven months later. Continue Reading Interested in reading more case studies? Request your free copy of From Exam Room to Courtroom, a publication featuring ten real-life case studies of physicians who have been involved in medical malpractice legal disputes, summarized by CAP’s former General Counsel, Gordon Ownby. As a leading provider of superior medical malpractice coverage in California for more than 40 years, CAP remains committed to providing physicians with secure and affordable protection and relevant practice and risk management resources, like these case studies, to help them run safe and successful practices. To learn more about becoming a CAP member, please contact Aimee Mazzacano at 714-940-5565 or via email at AMazzacano@CAPphysicians.com. Request an Instant Quote today to see how much you can save on medical malpractice coverage as a member of CAP. Medical professional liability coverage is provided to CAP members through the Mutual Protection Trust (MPT), an unincorporated interindemnity arrangement organized under Section 1280.7 of the California Insurance Code. Comments are closed.