Healthcare
Contrary to Common Physician Perceptions, Care Coordination Does Not Increase Liability Risks
By American Academy of Family Physicians
Mar 30, 2005, 06:22

Although the coordination of care for patients with multiple chronic conditions is a fundamental function of primary care, many physicians are reluctant to take on expanded care coordination for fear of increased exposure to medical liability.

In fact, a representative sample of 1,238 practicing physicians found that 49 percent listed legal liability as one of the two main barriers to care coordination.

In a new study that combines legal research with key informant interviews, Hall and colleagues find no strong basis for these reservations; instead, they find that care coordination done well may lower liability risks.

Liability insurers interviewed as part of the study indicated no reluctance to insure physicians who coordinate care for patients with multiple chronic conditions and no strong tendency to attribute higher risk to this role.

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