Medico-legal
Improving quality, safety and professionalism in practice. Everything you need to help you with clinical and legal challenges.

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Informed financial consent-trust and transparency
Clear, proactive conversations about costs help build patient trust from the start. Informed financial consent supports good medical practice, strengthens relationships and reduces medicolegal risk. When patients understand what to expect, they are more confident in their care, less surprised by your bill and you are better protected.

Court of Appeal concludes GP’s actions to “wait and see” were not negligent
Doctors’ care is judged against what is reasonable in the circumstances, not ideal practice. In this case, the Court of Appeal found that a GP’s failure to investigate the possibility of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma was not negligent, recognising that time can be a legitimate diagnostic tool when used appropriately.

Prior agreement required to charge more than Medicare fee
A privately insured patient was charged an anaesthetic fee above the Medicare scheduled fee, without prior discussion about the cost. According to the court, where no fee is agreed and the patient is not informed about any gap payment, the Medicare scheduled fee was the reasonable fee and the maximum the practitioner was entitled to be paid. The case highlights the importance of informed financial consent before treatment.

Here's the right way to correct medical records
You have legal and professional responsibilities when making a change to a medical record. Some of these can vary between jurisdictions.

Informed Financial Consent: what every doctor should know about medico‑legal risk

Writing a medico-legal report – important considerations
There are several kinds of medico-legal reports. In this article we review key issues with independent expert reports and treating practitioner reports.

AI scribes - a checklist of things to consider
This checklist will help you decide whether to use an AI scribe in your practice and ensure you consider any risks that need to be addressed before and during implementation.

An introduction to artificial intelligence
If you’re interested in artificial intelligence (AI) but don’t fully understand it, we provide some explanations and context about how AI can be used in healthcare.