The considerable financial costs of malpractice lawsuits - the expensive, lengthy litigation and higher insurance premiums - are a constant concern for every surgical center. A new study finds the surgeons involved in such suits pay a steep emotional price as well, in the form of depression, emotional exhaustion, increased stress and lower professional satisfaction.
The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, examined personal and professional characteristics in surgeons, and found malpractice lawsuits were strongly and independently linked to surgeon depression and career burnout.
Of the 7,164 participating surgeons, 24.6% experienced a malpractice action in the 24 months before the survey. The stress caused by malpractice litigation was rated as equivalent to that of financial worries, pressure to succeed in research, work/home conflicts and coping with patients' suffering and death. Surgeons who experienced a recent malpractice lawsuit also reported less career satisfaction, and were less likely to recommend a surgical or medical career to their children or others.
The surgical specialties reporting the highest rates of malpractice lawsuits in the last 2 years were neurosurgery (31%), cardiothoracic surgery (29%), general surgery (28%), colorectal surgery (28%), and obstetric and gynecologic surgery (28%). The specialties reporting the lowest rate of malpractice lawsuits were otolaryngology (12%), ophthalmology (12%) and breast surgery (14%).
"The frequency of malpractice lawsuits and the adverse associations they have significantly impact surgeons' personal health, yet these consequences are often poorly understood," says Charles Balch, MD, PhD, FACS, the study's lead author and professor of surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center. "The purpose of this study was to examine these repercussions more closely and pave the way for additional research to identify individual, organizational and societal interventions to support surgeons who experience malpractice litigation."
Mark McGraw
