Medical College of Wisconsin, Department of Emergency Medicine, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Healthpartners Regions Hospital Emergency Medicine, St. Paul, Minnesota.
West J Emerg Med. 2024 Jul;25(4):579-583. doi: 10.5811/westjem.17809.
It is an unfortunate truth that Emergency Medicine (EM) physicians will, at some point, have contact with the medicolegal system. However, most EM residency training programs lack education on the legal system in their curriculum, leaving EM physicians unprepared for litigation. To fill this gap, we designed a high-yield and succinct medical legal workshop highlighting legal issues commonly encountered by EM physicians. We aimed to determine the effectiveness of this curriculum by measuring pre and post knowledge questions.
A two-hour session included a case-based discussion of common misconceptions held by physicians about the legal system, proper steps when interacting with the legal system and review of legal documents. This session was developed with the involvement of our hospital legal counsel and discussed real encounters. The effectiveness of the session was determined using pre- and post-session surveys assessing participant knowledge and comfort approaching the scenarios.
A total of 34 EM residents had the opportunity to complete this workshop as a part of their conference curriculum. A total of 26 participants completed the pre-survey and 19 participants completed the post-survey. No participants had previous training in the legal aspects of medicine, including handling a subpoena, serving as a witness, or giving a deposition. The pre-survey demonstrated that there was significant uncertainty surrounding the processes, definitions, and the legal system interaction. Many participants stated they would not know what to do if they received a subpoena (85.71%), were called as a witness in a trial (96.43%) or receive correspondence from a lawyer (96.43%). The post survey revealed an increased knowledge base and confidence following the session. 100% of residents reported knowing what to do after receiving a subpoena, being called as a witness and understanding the process involved in giving a deposition. All residents reported that the session was beneficial and provided crucial information.
EM residents have limited baseline understanding of how to approach common legal scenarios. Educational materials available for this curriculum topic are limited. Based on the rapid knowledge increase observed in our residents, we believe our workshop could be adapted for use at other residency programs.
不幸的是，急诊医学（EM）医生在某些时候会与医疗法律系统接触。然而，大多数 EM 住院医师培训计划在课程中缺乏法律制度方面的教育，使 EM 医生对诉讼毫无准备。为了填补这一空白，我们设计了一个高收益、简洁的医疗法律研讨会，重点介绍 EM 医生常见的法律问题。我们旨在通过衡量课前和课后的知识问题来确定该课程的有效性。
一个两小时的课程包括一个基于案例的讨论，讨论医生对法律体系的常见误解、与法律体系互动的正确步骤以及法律文件的审查。这个课程是在我们医院法律顾问的参与下开发的，并讨论了真实的遭遇。通过课前和课后的调查来评估参与者对情景的知识和舒适度，来确定课程的效果。
共有 34 名急诊住院医师有机会作为会议课程的一部分完成这个研讨会。共有 26 名参与者完成了课前调查，19 名参与者完成了课后调查。没有参与者之前接受过医学法律方面的培训，包括处理传票、作为证人或进行证词。课前调查表明，参与者对程序、定义和法律系统的互动存在很大的不确定性。许多参与者表示，如果他们收到传票（85.71%）、被传唤作为审判证人（96.43%）或收到律师的信件（96.43%），他们不知道该怎么办。课后调查显示，参加完课程后，参与者的知识库和信心都有所增加。100%的住院医师报告说，在收到传票、被传唤作为证人并了解证词过程后，他们知道该怎么做。所有住院医师都表示，该课程是有益的，并提供了关键信息。
急诊住院医师对如何处理常见法律情况的了解有限。这个课程主题的可用教育材料有限。基于我们住院医师观察到的快速知识增长，我们相信我们的研讨会可以改编为其他住院医师培训计划使用。
