1.      What are the difference between a discipline and a profession?

2.      What are the three conditions needed for a charge of negligence?

3.      An assisted-living facility had a common meeting room where elderly tenants met each night for happy hour. At one of the meetings, a man began to choke on a piece of food. A healthcare employee of the facility, a catering manager from a local restaurant who had brought the food, and a young man who was visiting another resident quickly surrounded him. The health care employee said he did not know what to do. The catering manager and young visitor did nothing. The man collapsed and died. Subsequently his family sued the facility, employee, caterer, and visitor for negligence. Was anyone negligent? Explain your reasoning.

4.      An ambulance received a call and rushed to the house of a man that was apparently having a heart attack. The emergency medical treatment team cared for him properly and placed him in the vehicle. Instead of driving him to a nearby hospital, they took him across the city. The man died during the ride. The family subsequently learned that the ambulance company had an arrangement to be paid for each patient they brought to the hospital. The family sued the hospital and ambulance company. Is it likely to win the lawsuit? Explain your reasoning.

5.      A patient requested surgery to remove a benign tumor from his neck. The surgeon told the man it was close to a vital nerve and its removal culd cause paralysis or worse. The man insisted it be removed prior to the wedding of his daughter. The man then signed a waiver relieving the doctor of all responsibility. After the surgery, the man refused to wear a brace that would protect the area where the tumor was removed. Seven days after the operation, he was suddenly paralyzed on his left side. He walked with a limp. He sued the hospital doctor for ruining his daughter’s wedding. Is he likely to win the lawsuit? Explain your reasoning.

6.      A doctor told a patient that she needed surgery and she agreed. As part of the preparation, she signed several papers. One of them gave the doctor permission to perform the operation. The other waived her right to sue if the operation did not produce the desired result. The operation was a failure, leaving her in a slightly worse state than before the surgery. She sued the hospital and doctor for negligence. Is she likely to win the lawsuit? Explain your reasoning.

7.      A physician examined a patient and prescribed three prescriptions to correct problems with dizziness, depression, and a mild anxiety disorder. After several weeks of treatment and with no change in his condition, he went to another doctor doctor. He learned he was given the wrong combination of medications. They would not harm him nor post would they help him. He sued the original doctor for negligence. Is he likely to win the lawsuit? Explain your reasoning.

8.      We know that medical errors occur because of people, technology, health records, and communications. Which do you think is the largest source of malpractice lawsuits? The least important? Explain your reasoning.

9.      Of risk management, transparency, training, economics, and empathy, which is most likely to reduce the number of serious reportable events? The least likely to reduce the events? Explain your reasoning.

10.  A doctor practicing in the chest and abdomen regions of the body performs 300 surgeries a year. How much medical malpractice insurance would you recommend for him? Would you recommend claims made or occurrence insurance? Explain your reasoning.

11.  Why do officers and board members in health care organization need a special liability insurance to protect them from legal liability lawsuits?

12.  Do you agree that the business judgment rule should be used as a shiled so directors are not personally liable for their decisions that are harmful to the organization? Explain your reasoning.

13.  A hospital with a large endowment deposited the funds in an investment bank that also held considerable funds for one of its board members. The board member became suspicious that the bank was involved in a Ponzi scheme. He withdrew all his money but said nothing at board meetings. Six months later the investment bank went bankrupt and the hospital lost its entire endowment. Shareholders sued the board. Are they likely to win? Is the single board likely to face criminal charges? Explain your reasoning.

14.  For the board member in the previous exercise. During the trial, prosecutors provided evidence that the board member received fees and vacation trips from the investment bank that failed. He did not report them to the hospital board. At this point, the insurance company that provided the hospital with D&O insurance refused to pay legal costs for the board member or hospital and declared the policy to be void. Will court uphold the insurer action? Why or why not?