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Formal Patient Complaints and Malpractice Events Involving Orthopedic Spine Surgeons: A Ten-Year Analysis
Matthew Rae1, Daniela F Barreto Rocha, Daniel S Hayes
1Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, Geisinger Musculoskeletal Institute, Danville, PA.
Spine
|November 3, 2021
Summary
Patient complaints against orthopedic spine surgeons, though infrequent, primarily concern access and availability. Malpractice event rates varied significantly among surgeons studied over a decade.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedic surgery
- Patient safety
- Risk management
Background:
- Unsolicited patient complaints may indicate underlying risk management issues.
- Analyzing complaints can help identify potential malpractice events.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze patient complaints, potential risks, and malpractice events associated with orthopedic spine surgeons.
- To identify risk factors for patient complaints in orthopedic spine surgery.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study analyzed complaint, risk, and malpractice data for six orthopedic spine surgeons over 10 years.
- Patient complaints were classified using the Patient Complaint Analysis System.
- A control group of all patients seen by the surgeons was used to identify risk factors.
Main Results:
- The overall complaint rate was 0.79%, with 35% related to access and availability, and 32% to care and treatment.
- Dissatisfaction with surgical outcomes was a key issue in care and treatment complaints.
- Malpractice event rates ranged from 0.06% to 0.65%, with significant variation between surgeons.
Conclusions:
- Patient complaints against orthopedic spine surgeons are infrequent but mainly related to access and availability.
- The rate of malpractice events shows considerable variability among individual surgeons.
