Medical Malpractice Mediation: Benefits Gained, Opportunities Lost

In the past decade, the United States healthcare system has begun to use mediation to facilitate communication between patients and physicians after an adverse medical event, to ease tensions among members of care-giving teams, to resolve medical malpractice claims, and to help family members and medical professionals make awesome and wrenching decisions at the end of life. Implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 will produce new controversies and increase the need for mediation. Patients, families, physicians, nurses, other healthcare professionals, and administrators will require help managing the disagreements that arise as they adapt to the altered healthcare system. The Department of Health and Human Services understands this. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality recently announced seven grants as part of the Patient Safety and Medical Liability Initiative. Four grants, totaling $10 million, went to programs focusing on the interactions among patient safety goals, the litigation system, and physician–patient communication. Intelligent use of mediation and mediation skills can help us