Negligence, malpractice and recklessness committed by otorhinolaryngologists in the state of São Paulo-Brazil

The present study aims to survey the statistics of complaints of medical errors against otorhinolaryngologists in Regional Council of Medicine of the State of São Paulo (CREMESP), between the years 2010 and 2020.

Inquiries and Lawsuits filed against otorhinolaryngologists working in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, between 2010 and 2020, at the CREMESP, manually, by the main plaintiff who is an elected Councilor and bound by confidentiality, were surveyed. The records were analyzed and separated according to the type of medical error reported: malpractice, recklessness or negligence and the subspecialties of otorhinolaryngology. The penalties applied to doctors found guilty at trial, with final and unappealable sentences, were also studied.

A total of 98 files were collected, of which 81 were archived and 17 were Professional Ethics Processes. Among the 81 inquiries involving medical error in one of the 3 modalities raised in the survey, 35 of them (43.2%) were complaints for negligence, 23 (28.3%) for malpractice and 23 (28.3%) for recklessness. The subspecialty with the most complaints for medical error was Otology and the ones that were most convicted were Rhinology and Pharyngology, making up 33% of the convictions each. The ethical penalties applied to doctors were mostly confidential penalties.

The present study showed that Otorhinolaryngology is a specialty that presented an average of 8.9 complaints per year in the last decade (between 2010 and 2020) related to medical error, 82.6% of which were filed and 17.3% of them transformed into Professional Ethical Processes at CREMESP. Among the Professional Ethical Proceedings initiated, 52.9% were judged with a decision of guilt for the accused physician and 55.5% of these received culpability for violation of article 1° of the Code of Medical Ethics.