Skip to main content

Table 3 Strategies to mitigate litigation characteristics

From: Evaluative reports on medical malpractice policies in obstetrics: a rapid scoping review

Author, year (setting)

Sample

Strategy name

Follow-up period

Adverse events

Behrens 2011 [21] (Mississippi, USA)

4878 lawsuits

Mississippi tort reform legislation

7 years

Obstetrical/gynecological

Bovbjerg 2005 [22] (USA)

226 claims + 281 surveys

Administrative compensation model

8 years in Florida, 9 years in Virginia

Birth-related neurologic injuries

Currie 2008 [30] (USA)

NR

Noneconomic damage caps

NR

Obstetrics

Limit joint and several liability

Caps on punitive damages

Reforms of the collateral source rule

Edwards 2010 [23] (Virginia, USA)

571 obstetricians

Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program (BIP)

19 years

Obstetrics

Ho 2011 [24] (USA)

234,826 adverse events

Apology laws

NR

Any medical malpractice including obstetrics

Iizuka 2013 [25] (USA)

NR

Caps on noneconomic damages (CapsNED)

NR

Birth trauma injury to neonate; obstetric trauma to mother

Caps on punitive damages (CapsPD)

Collateral source rule (CSR) reform

Joint and several liability reform

Kachalia 2010 [31] (Michigan, USA)

1131 claims

Medical Error Disclosure Program

4 years

Any medical error

Kilgore 2006 [32] (USA)

NR

Damage caps strategy

NR

Internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics

Statute of limitations

Milne 2013 [27] (Canada)

39 participating hospitals

Managing Obstetrical Risk Efficiently (MORE)

8 years (costs) & 9 years (catastrophic infant claims)

Obstetrics

Pegalis 2012 [26] (USA)

NA

Patient safety guidelines

NR

Obstetrics

Santos 2015 [29] (USA)

5 labor and delivery sites

Risk reduction labor and delivery model

2 years and 3 months

Obstetrics; labor and delivery events (shoulder dystocia and fetal distress)

Studdert 2004 [3] (California, USA)

152 cases

California’s Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) cap

17 years

Surgical errors, obstetrical errors, missed or delayed diagnoses, and drug errors

Thorpe 2004 [33] (USA)

NR

Award cap strategy

NR

Obstetrics, surgical, internal

Winn 2007 [28] (UK)

7352 obstetrics and gynecology claims

Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts

3 years

Any medical malpractice obstetrics

  1. Abbreviations: NA not applicable, NR not reported