[ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17776253%255E601,00.html Sin bin for rogue witnessesAdam Cresswell, Health editorJanuary 10, 2006 A SPORT-STYLE system of red and yellow cards is being considered to deal with rogue expert witnesses whose eccentric or irrational views are skewing medical negligence cases.Retired medical experts can earn tens of thousands of dollars each time they testify about whether other doctors' treatments were negligent. Their role has been mired in renewed controversy after an Australian study suggested last week that some obstetricians were being unfairly blamed for cases of cerebral palsy - a condition behind 60 per cent ofnegligence payouts in obstetric cases. The research found that some cases of cerebral palsy could be caused by a virus shortly before or after birth. Traditionally, oxygen starvation during birth was thought to be the main culprit. Alastair MacLennan, leader of the South Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group, which published the findings in the British Medical Journal, blamed the courts' willingness to find doctors at fault for cerebral palsy partly on "hired-gun expert witnesses" prepared to make groundless claims that the injury could have been avoided. He has proposed the red-card scheme as a way to bring errant experts to heel. Under the plan, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists would audit and train expert witnesses, and monitor their opinions for statements deemed impractical, dangerous or extreme. Those giving evidence without being registered, or giving opinions not backed by the college, would receive a warning, and a steeper penalty such as loss of college membership on a repeat offence. "Several of the American colleges have this red card, yellow card system, and anecdotally I am told this is reining in some of the more rogue expert witnesses," Professor MacLennan said. "In Australia at the moment, they can say what the hell they like, which is a real worry. It's fairly easy to fool a judge who's never judged a cerebral palsy case before." The chairman of the RANZCOG's medico-legal committee, Robert Lyneham, said the college was considering the plan, and was developing its own proposals to allow obstetricians to register as expert witnesses and receive training. Professor MacLennan said fewer than 1 per cent of cerebral palsy cases were caused during birth. Two international expert panels had agreed that proving the cause was a sudden deprivation of oxygen during labour - something that could be blamed on an obstetrician - would require nine specific pieces of evidence, but rogue experts ignored these, he said. "There's no policing of medico-legal opinion - people in their retirement can sit and give outrageous opinions without peer review, and do," he said. "They're often quite out of touch, and in particular in cerebral palsy they almost never mention the modern literature. "What we're looking for is nine pieces of objective evidence, not somebody saying, 'Oh, this baby was crook at delivery, it must be due to a bad delivery and in my opinion it would not have had cerebral palsy half an hour beforehand'." Another prominent obstetrician, David Molloy, said there was "a very difficult group of known rogue expert witnesses" who could not currently be dealt with any other way than to discredit their views in court. "There's a very substantial amount of money being made by a small group of doctors, when, in many cases, it's been a decade since they laid hands on a patient," he said.
RE: [ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses
Title: Message Interesting article. Further evidence we, as a group need to talk to governments to have legislation changed to ensure these hire guns are harnessed. Letting RANZCOG tutor experts will be dangerous and will continue the abuse. Hired guns- Medical officers that can be brought for their 'expert' opinion are so available. The problem is how can their views be discredited when the AMA and the Medical Registration Boards of all the states continue to allow them to be registered and to call themselves Dr's. Many of these 'experts' have removed themselves from hands on practice for many reasons - think about some of those as I cannot write it. Their 'evidence' or statements are considered to be protected and cannot be referred to the Health Rights Commission as it is collected for forensic cases i.e.. for the courts. I experienced a vicious assault and torture from a prisoner in an ICU resulting in chronic PTSD. I sued Work Cover, my employer's insurer for negligence. I settled out of court primarily because I kept on being sent to various hired guns for an assessment. When the insurer wasn't happy with what report they wrote they would then send me to another and so on. My own Dr would warn me prior of what this Dr would be like and he had reported their behaviour to his own professional college on numerous occasions prior to my case. Luckily I was warned about video surveillance that Work Cover also used, not that it mattered as my Dr said I had to stay 'with' people- safest place was the casino as it had security. Looked like I was having 'fun' at the clubs and casino yet I was so scared of been attacked again! The insurer just keeps getting away with this abominable behaviour, the courts continue to ignore blatant manipulation of their system meanwhile the injured continue to be subjected to horrific re-traumatising that if one did not have a strong sense of justice or sense of well being and of self worth would be left a complete mess. NZ no fault insurerACC system would remove all this and it is there for the injured when they need it most, lawyers don't get fat, investigators wouldn't have hours of 'evidence' collected to discredit victims and it removes hired guns. How can we address this? Cheers Barb -Original Message-From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Helen and GrahamSent: Tuesday, 10 January 2006 7:35 AMTo: ozmidwiferySubject: [ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17776253%255E601,00.html Sin bin for rogue witnessesAdam Cresswell, Health editorJanuary 10, 2006 A SPORT-STYLE system of red and yellow cards is being considered to deal with rogue expert witnesses whose eccentric or irrational views are skewing medical negligence cases.Retired medical experts can earn tens of thousands of dollars each time they testify about whether other doctors' treatments were negligent. Their role has been mired in renewed controversy after an Australian study suggested last week that some obstetricians were being unfairly blamed for cases of cerebral palsy - a condition behind 60 per cent ofnegligence payouts in obstetric cases. The research found that some cases of cerebral palsy could be caused by a virus shortly before or after birth. Traditionally, oxygen starvation during birth was thought to be the main culprit. Alastair MacLennan, leader of the South Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group, which published the findings in the British Medical Journal, blamed the courts' willingness to find doctors at fault for cerebral palsy partly on "hired-gun expert witnesses" prepared to make groundless claims that the injury could have been avoided. He has proposed the red-card scheme as a way to bring errant experts to heel. Under the plan, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists would audit and train expert witnesses, and monitor their opinions for statements deemed impractical, dangerous or extreme. Those giving evidence without being registered, or giving opinions not backed by the college, would receive a warning, and a steeper penalty such as loss of college membership on a repeat offence. "Several of the American colleges have this red card, yellow card system, and anecdotally I am told this is reining in some of the more rogue expert witnesses," Professor MacLennan said. "In Australia at the moment, they can say what the hell they like, which is a real worry. It's fairly easy to fool a judge who's never judged a cerebral palsy case before." The chairman of the RANZCOG's medico-legal committee, Robert Lyneham, said the college was considering the plan, and was developing its own proposals to allow obstetricians to register as expert witnesses and
RE: [ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses
Title: Message Another prominent obstetrician, David Molloy, said there was "a very difficult group of known rogue expert witnesses" who could not currently be dealt with any other way than to discredit their views in court. "There's a very substantial amount of money being made by a small group of doctors, when, in many cases, it's been a decade since they laid hands on a patient," he said. Hmm... I would be worried about his expert opinion also considering it has probably been years since he last witnessed a vaginal birth! Sorry, slanderous comments should be kept to the coffee table...cuppa anyone? Jo -Original Message-From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Helen and GrahamSent: Tuesday, January 10, 2006 8:05 AMTo: ozmidwiferySubject: [ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17776253%255E601,00.html Sin bin for rogue witnessesAdam Cresswell, Health editorJanuary 10, 2006 A SPORT-STYLE system of red and yellow cards is being considered to deal with rogue expert witnesses whose eccentric or irrational views are skewing medical negligence cases.Retired medical experts can earn tens of thousands of dollars each time they testify about whether other doctors' treatments were negligent. Their role has been mired in renewed controversy after an Australian study suggested last week that some obstetricians were being unfairly blamed for cases of cerebral palsy - a condition behind 60 per cent ofnegligence payouts in obstetric cases. The research found that some cases of cerebral palsy could be caused by a virus shortly before or after birth. Traditionally, oxygen starvation during birth was thought to be the main culprit. Alastair MacLennan, leader of the South Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group, which published the findings in the British Medical Journal, blamed the courts' willingness to find doctors at fault for cerebral palsy partly on "hired-gun expert witnesses" prepared to make groundless claims that the injury could have been avoided. He has proposed the red-card scheme as a way to bring errant experts to heel. Under the plan, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists would audit and train expert witnesses, and monitor their opinions for statements deemed impractical, dangerous or extreme. Those giving evidence without being registered, or giving opinions not backed by the college, would receive a warning, and a steeper penalty such as loss of college membership on a repeat offence. "Several of the American colleges have this red card, yellow card system, and anecdotally I am told this is reining in some of the more rogue expert witnesses," Professor MacLennan said. "In Australia at the moment, they can say what the hell they like, which is a real worry. It's fairly easy to fool a judge who's never judged a cerebral palsy case before." The chairman of the RANZCOG's medico-legal committee, Robert Lyneham, said the college was considering the plan, and was developing its own proposals to allow obstetricians to register as expert witnesses and receive training. Professor MacLennan said fewer than 1 per cent of cerebral palsy cases were caused during birth. Two international expert panels had agreed that proving the cause was a sudden deprivation of oxygen during labour - something that could be blamed on an obstetrician - would require nine specific pieces of evidence, but rogue experts ignored these, he said. "There's no policing of medico-legal opinion - people in their retirement can sit and give outrageous opinions without peer review, and do," he said. "They're often quite out of touch, and in particular in cerebral palsy they almost never mention the modern literature. "What we're looking for is nine pieces of objective evidence, not somebody saying, 'Oh, this baby was crook at delivery, it must be due to a bad delivery and in my opinion it would not have had cerebral palsy half an hour beforehand'." Another prominent obstetrician, David Molloy, said there was "a very difficult group of known rogue expert witnesses" who could not currently be dealt with any other way than to discredit their views in court. "There's a very substantial amount of money being made by a small group of doctors, when, in many cases, it's been a decade since they laid hands on a patient," he said. --No virus found in this incoming message.Checked by AVG Free Edition.Version: 7.1.371 / Virus Database: 267.14.14/222 - Release Date: 1/5/2006 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.371 / Virus Database: 267.14.16/225 - Release Date: 1/9/2006
Re: [ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses
Title: Re: [ozmidwifery] Interesting article about rogue expert witnesses The research found that some cases of cerebral palsy could be caused by a virus shortly before or after birth. Traditionally, oxygen starvation during birth was thought to be the main culprit. I have been saying this for years and didnt the Drs shout me down!! OK so now thats the cerebral palsy stuff is biting them, its not their fault!! Considering it is rarely caused as a direct result of birth then lets stop all the routine CTGs, cause we know the only thing they do is increase the c/s rate. So whos game enough to start using their own words against them in the interests of women?? JC
