Who helps with medical treatment errors?

If a doctor does not educate his patient about a treatment or procedure, or if he or she is doing outdated therapy, experts talk about a treatment error. Likewise, forgotten swabs or surgical cutlery in the patient's body can be a reason for compensation for pain and damage claims. Anyone suspecting a treatment error with themselves or a relative can turn to three contact points and patient advocates in Germany. Because the burden of proof lies with the patient.

Three points of contact for patients with suspected treatment errors
If, after the knee surgery, pain is recurring or the hip is experiencing problems, it can easily lead to the suspicion that the doctor has made a mistake in treatment. In 2013, the panels of experts and conciliation boards of the medical associations had to assess 7,922 cases of suspected treatment errors. 2,243 times the experts came to the conclusion that doctors have made mistakes. As Samir Rabbata of the German Medical Association explained in an interview with the news agency "dpa", "in 1,864 cases a treatment error was found to be the cause of a health impairment claiming compensation". Concerned in this country can turn to the own health insurance, the Independent Patient Advice (UPD) as well as the expert commissions and conciliation offices of the medical associations.

"The individual health insurance funds should also help their insured persons to tackle treatment errors," explains Ann Marini of the Central Association of Statutory Health Insurance (GKV) to the news agency. Then the insured person must release the doctor from his duty of confidentiality, so that the health insurance company can inspect the files. If the health experts find evidence of a treatment error, the patient can take legal action against the doctor.

Not every complication occurs because of a treatment error
"However, there is not necessarily a medical error before the desired success fails," said Kai Behrens, press officer of the AOK-Bundesverbandes, to the news agency. In addition, there are always undesirable events that are unavoidable. For example, there are risks associated with many surgeries that occur even without a doctor's faulty behavior. "If, however, patients suffer damage due to medical due diligence, then there is talk of treatment errors. In these cases, we help our insured with the clarification, "Behrens continued.

In addition, a therapy according to outdated medical knowledge is considered a treatment error. "Medical errors can occur if the doctor does something wrong or misses something," explains Marini. Organizational errors or negligent behavior of employees of the doctor may also be harmful to health. Similarly, the missing, incorrect or incomplete information by the doctor as a treatment error. Because the patient must be informed about possible risks before treatment in order to be able to decide against the therapy if necessary.

Expert report reveals treatment errors
Errors in treatment are revealed by the health insurance company's reports, which can be ordered by patients free of charge. This is reported by patient advisor Michaela Schwabe of the Independent Patient Counseling Germany (UPD), to whom affected patients can also turn to. For the consultation no fees are due.

In addition, the expert commissions and arbitration boards of the medical associations are the contact persons. "They offer peer review and out-of-court dispute resolution for treatment error reproaches," explains Rabbata. The patient could also check there free of charge if his allegation is actually justified. "In about 90 percent of the cases, the decisions of the expert commissions and arbitration boards are accepted by both sides and the disputes resolved." When negotiating compensation payments, those concerned should have a medical lawyer represented. "He should be involved in the area of ​​medical malpractice If possible, work on the patient side alone ", informed the specialist lawyer for medical law Peter Gellner in an interview with the news agency. According to his colleague Lovis Wambach from Bremen, initial consultation with patient advocates is often free of charge.

Burden of proof lies with the patient
"The patient must prove a medical error," said Wambach to the news agency. Therefore, he advises to write down the events in as much detail as possible. "Because the memory sometimes fades quickly," explains Gellner. According to Wambach, photos are also often useful. In addition, names and addresses of witnesses should be noted. "These can be, for example, bed neighbors in the hospital," says patient advisor Schwabe.

In principle, there is the possibility that patient and doctor agree out of court. "As a rule, compensation for damages such as loss of earnings or drug subsidies can be claimed in addition to compensation for pain and suffering," reports Wambach. The severity of the compensation depends on the severity of the damage. "In the case of severe paraplegia, it is in the range of more than 600,000 euros," Gellner informs. Often more significant are the claims for damages, as loss of earnings and care expenditures can grow rapidly to several million euros. Experience has shown that the extrajudicial settlement becomes more difficult the higher the claims for damages are. However, a lawsuit can take "years," patient advocate Wambach said. Nevertheless, those affected should not shy away from this path and fight for their rights. (Ag)

/ Span>

Picture: Martin Büdenbender