May 30, 2025
A Doctor’s Guide to Selecting a Medical Malpractice Insurer
Whether you’re choosing medical malpractice insurance for the first time or seeking additional coverage for an established practice, selecting the right insurer is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. When your reputation and livelihood are on the line, you need a strong, proactive insurance partner on your side.
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Effective Patient Communication: Strategies for Challenging Situations
Poor communication often results in poor treatment outcomes and patient dissatisfaction. Our patient safety and risk management guide provides expert strategies and guidance that can help you improve communication with patients and families.
Jun 18, 2024
New and Improved Learning Platform for Industry-Leading Accredited Education
The Doctors Company has launched a new and improved learning platform for our industry-leading accredited education for physicians, dentists, and nurses.
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The Doctor’s Advocate
Professional Education
Preventing Errors in Preoperative Clearance (Claims Corner)
Primary care providers (PCPs) routinely manage complex elderly patients with multiple comorbidities who require elective surgery. Errors can occur when providers are rushed, there is a lack of effective interoffice communication, and the patient has a low health literacy. Communication and care coordination issues are commonly noted among PCPs and consulting specialists. The Doctors Company has analyzed closed claims where PCPs have been held responsible for failures in surgical mismanagement, specifically preop clearance. This program will highlight the contributing factors identified in malpractice claims involving medical clearance and provide practice strategies for reducing liability risk.
Professional Education
Loss Lessons: Lithium Toxicity, Fine Tuning Medications Used in Behavioral Health
Lithium therapy can be used for bipolar affective disorders and in depressive disorders where other antidepressants have been unsuccessful. It is considered a “high-risk” drug due to its narrow therapeutic range and potential for overdose toxicity. This case illustrates the pitfalls that occurred resulting in litigation. It is followed by a discussion of the problems that could have been avoided by following safety guidelines for prescribing lithium.
Quick Check: Informed Consent Process
Using our Quick Check tool can help you improve your informed consent process and documentation.
Professional Education
Failure to Diagnose Congenital Asplenia Results in Tragic Patient Outcome
(Claims Corner CME)
Referral process system failures can contribute to delayed diagnosis of serious conditions which can lead to severe consequences for patients. Problems can arise when referral is needed but is not initiated properly or timely, when the specialist does not ensure their recommendations are fully and clearly communicated back to the referring clinician, when the referring clinician does not understand or act on the specialist’s recommendations, or when the referring office fails to track their open referrals to ensure they have received all consultation reports. This program will examine a malpractice case involving all the above referral-related deficiencies, leading to a catastrophic result for the patient and significant liability for the involved clinicians. Risk management strategies will be provided for any practice to improve the referral process and to prevent similar tragedies from occurring.
The Doctors Company to Acquire ProAssurance Corporation for $25.00 per Share in Cash
The Doctors Company, the nation’s largest physician-owned medical malpractice insurer, and ProAssurance Corporation (NYSE: PRA), an industry-leading specialty insurer with extensive expertise in medical liability, products liability for medical technology and life sciences, and workers’ compensation insurance, today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which ProAssurance will be acquired by The Doctors Company.
Plastic Surgery: Frequently Asked Patient Safety Questions
Our experts answer questions from plastic surgeons, addressing issues such as patient selection and managing patient expectations.
