Doctor's Orders

By Glen Beanard, Technical Contributor

John is sitting in a doctor's exam room after having several tests run. The doctor enters the room and informs John that he has been diagnosed with a high blood pressure condition. The doctor explains the condition to John. He informs him that he must make an immediate change in his diet, reduce his exposure to stress and take medication. He writes John a prescription, outlines his diet, and schedules him for future check-up intervals.

The doctor warns John that if he does not follow his directions, the condition could easily turn life threatening. That is the last time the doctor sees John. Sadly, John dies of a heart attack some months later that might have been prevented if he had only listened to the doctor. John's widow then files a lawsuit against the doctor for malpractice. She claims that the doctor said nothing and gave John a "clean bill of health."

Fortunately, this story about John is fictional. Unfortunately, the situation is not entirely fictional. This sort of thing happens regularly and our industry is a prime target.

In the fictional story above, the doctor's reputation, huge sums of money and even his establishment are all hanging in the balance of a "he-said-she-said" debate. It was not the doctor's fault that John failed to listen to him. Nor was it the doctor's fault that John even had such a condition to begin with.

That prett...