As a dental clinic, it’s important to be aware of the potential for lawsuits, as while most patients are satisfied with their care, you could still face legal action from those who aren’t. In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at some of the people who might sue your dental clinic as well as how to protect yourself.
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Dental clinics, like any other business, are at risk of being sued for a number of reasons. In this post, we’ll take a look at some of the most common legal issues that can affect dental clinics, and outline who might be able to sue your clinic if something goes wrong. Keep in mind that this is not an exhaustive list, so if you’re concerned about a specific issue, it’s best to speak with an attorney.
Who can sue a dental clinic and for what reasons?
Dental clinics might be wondering who could potentially sue them. While there are many potential plaintiffs, four groups, in particular, are worth paying attention to. Let’s take a closer look at each of these groups and what you should do to protect yourself from potential litigation.
A. Patients
There are several reasons why dental patients might sue your dental clinic, ranging from dental mishaps to dental errors regarding their dental records or billing information. At the end of the day, it boils down to them feeling like they were wronged somehow and that you were at fault. If you examine dental patients and dental records, there is a good chance that you’ll come across something that might be considered a mistake – everything from making the wrong dental diagnosis to fumbling around with dental instruments and causing damage.
There’s a reason dental malpractice insurance premiums are so high. Dental mistakes can wreak havoc on dental patients. In fact, dental mistakes are one of the leading causes of malpractice insurance claims.
B. Employees/ Dental Assistants
They might sue your dental clinic, but more often than not, they will sue over dental mismanagement of the dental records or dental billings. It’s important to note that dental assistants also have teeth when it comes to dental malpractice suits against dental clinics, and can function as plaintiffs just like dental patients. If dental assistants and dental records and dental billing information don’t see eye-to-eye, they may sue your dental clinic for malpractice after dental mismanagement or mistake causes them harm. There is a long list of dental assistant mistakes as well that could lead to dental malpractice lawsuits against your dental clinic such as dental records mishandling, dental billing mistakes, dental management issues, dental transcription errors, and more.
C. Dental Insurance Companies
The dental insurance companies you contract with may sue your dental clinic if something isn’t covered properly, and they feel that this is a dental malpractice issue. These can be some of the most difficult dental lawsuits to manage as dental insurance companies will often fight tooth and nail in order to protect their interests. Dental malpractice issues will often be dental insurance company’s biggest dental concerns, and while you may think dental insurance companies are on your side, they’re not above suing if they feel that you have committed dental malpractice with regards to their client’s dental records or dental billings.
D. Competitors
Yes, they’re definitely the ones to look out for. Dental professionals can be sued by other dental professionals, with dental lawsuits between dentists being responsible for over 600 claims filed per year. This isn’t just about dental ‘turf wars’ either – most of these lawsuits are filed by dental professionals who allege dental malpractice. Dental lawsuits filed by dental professionals generally allege dental malpractice or negligence in some way. In dental malpractice cases, the plaintiff is saying that something went wrong during treatment and usually asks for a large amount of money for the damages.
The Most Common Types Of Lawsuits Against Dental Clinics
Dental malpractice lawsuits are what you should be paying attention to. These dental malpractice allegations can come up in any situation, including dental assistant mistakes, dental billing errors, or dental mismanagement issues. It’s important for dental professionals to take note of these potential problems and fix them before they turn into lawsuits.
Consequences Of Being Sued
A dental malpractice lawsuit can be very financially devastating to the dental professional who is being sued. Unfortunately, dental lawsuits are all too common, but there are ways you can protect yourself from them.
What Should You Do
Avoid dental malpractice by making sure your dental professionals comply with the standard of care and don’t deviate from it. Also, you should always keep dental records and make sure to take positive dental action if an employee is making dental errors (e.g., terminating them). A dental clinic risk assessment advice can help dental professionals to determine proper risk management in the dental clinic. Make sure you have a dental malpractice insurance policy in place to protect yourself from being sued for dental mistakes. If a patient comes to you with a dental mistake that’s been made elsewhere, you may want to consider dental liability insurance for this situation as well.
Protect yourself in any way that you can in case anyone feels wronged by your dental clinic after something is mismanaged or a mistake is made. Make sure there are procedures in place to avoid these sorts of issues.