Claire Miley Discusses Cordero v. Christ Hospital and the Apparent Authority Concept
Healthcare risk managers take some solace in knowing that not every allegation of malpractice will fall on the hospital, that sometimes the individual physician or physician group will be responsible for defending the claim. But there is cause for concern with a recent court ruling that could increase the chance of the hospital being held responsible under the “apparent authority” concept.
In the April 2009 issue of Healthcare Risk Management, Claire Miley, a Member at Bass Berry & Sims, is interviewed regarding this recent ruling in the case of Cordero v. Christ Hospital and the apparent authority concept. The article is titled “Ruling may up risk for ‘apparent authority.’”
From the article: Cases alleging apparent authority are becoming more common, says Claire Miley, JD, a healthcare attorney at Bass, Berry & Sims in Nashville, TN. “We are seeing a growing number of these cases, especially with respect to hospital-based specialists, such as anesthesiologists, radiologists, and emergency medicine doctors. Courts are making it harder for hospitals to disavow liability for the actions of these types of doctors, and patients are increasingly successful in asserting that they reasonably believe that these types of doctors ‘work for’ the hospital,” she says. “Thus, with respect to these specialties, hospitals may have to increase their efforts to dispel any impression that the doctor is acting on behalf of the hospital.”
Click here to read the full article.
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