Medico-Legal

Dr Sara Sreih and Dr Ellen Walshe, Medico-legal Consultants at Medical Protection, advise on the growing field of telemedicine. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Medical Protection has received numerous requests for advice on the risks involved in remote consulting, or telemedicine. If you are practising telemedicine, it is important that you are aware…

Mr Liam Heffernan, Legal Counsel at Medisec, outlines what doctors need to be aware of when providing records and giving evidence at Medical Council fitness to practise inquiries When a doctor is subject to an inquiry before the fitness to practise committee (FTPC) of the Medical Council, other doctors who may have been involved in…

Dr Edward Farnan, Medico-legal Adviser at the Medical Defence Union, outlines some of the common themes in Medical Council investigations There are over 21,000 doctors registered in one of several divisions with the Medical Council. Of these, only a very small number, around 2 per cent, are involved in a complaint to the Medical Council…

Dr Rob Hendry, Medical Director at Medical Protection, outlines what medical practitioners need to considerwhen choosing their clinical indemnity policy Professional indemnity may not be a subject that doctors spend a lot of time thinking about, particularly when they have been coping with the pressures caused by the pandemic. Doctors often just want to know…

Dr Mary Davin-Power, Senior Clinical Risk Advisor at Medisec, outlines the obligations of doctors when undertaking occupational health assessment Doctors practising outside the specialty of occupational health, both GPs and consultants, will regularly receive requests from patients to complete forms relating to different aspects of occupational health. Medisec regularly assists members with queries ranging from…

Dr Stephen Priestley, Senior Medical Educator for Medical Protection’s Risk Prevention and Cognitive Institute, suggests ways to support doctors to sustain their own physical and mental wellbeing and support their colleagues during the pandemic While Ireland has begun to flatten the curve of Covid-19 transmission, the thought of another wave is probably looming at the…

Clear communication is vital between primary and secondary care, writes Ms Julie Price, Consultant Clinical Risk Advisor to Medisec Effective timely communication among healthcare providers is central to safe care and is particularly important between primary and secondary care. It ensures delivery of high-quality care for patients in a collaborative and efficient way, whilst making…

Ms Suzanne Creed, Clinical Risk Advisor at Medisec, explains what exactly is meant by informed consent Informed consent is a process of communication between a patient and their doctor, providing sufficient information for the patient to ‘make a choice’, about their proposed intervention, ie, a patient-centred approach.Obtaining informed consent is a fundamental principle of medical law.…