Rich Ben A
Bioethics Program, University of California at Davis Medical Center, 4150 V St., Suite 2400, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.
J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother. 2004;18(3):63-74.
Some advocates for improved pain management have devised and had initial success utilizing a controversial new weapon-the elder abuse claim. In California, two recent cases have been brought under the state's elder abuse statutes against physicians and health care institutions. The first lead to a much publicized jury verdict against a physician, and the second was recently settled as to all defendants, with related disciplinary actions against a treating physician and a skilled nursing facility by their respective regulatory agencies. This commentary reviews the phenomenon of litigating cases of undertreated pain, analyzes the most recent cases, and considers the implications of invoking elder abuse statutes in such cases.
一些倡导改善疼痛管理的人设计并初步成功运用了一种颇具争议的新手段——虐待老人指控。在加利福尼亚州，最近有两起案件依据该州的虐待老人法规针对医生和医疗保健机构提起诉讼。第一起案件引发了公众广泛关注，陪审团裁定医生败诉；第二起案件最近已就所有被告达成和解，相关监管机构对一名主治医生和一家专业护理机构采取了纪律处分措施。本评论文章审视了对疼痛治疗不足案件提起诉讼的现象，分析了最近的这些案件，并思考了在此类案件中援引虐待老人法规的影响。
