Law for Orthopaedic Surgeons - Avoiding Jeopardy

The topics for the 2022 Law for Orthopaedic Surgeons - Avoiding Jeopardy course are:

Consent: The legal background to consent and how surgeons can ensure they comply with it (Simon Gregg-Smith)

By the end of this session participants will:

• Understand the evolution of the law in relation to consent.
• Understand the importance of the Montgomery ruling.
• Be aware of the standards expected by the GMC.
• Develop methods for ensuring that consent is obtained and clearly documented to an appropriate standard.

Gross Negligence Manslaughter: An exploration of how the criminal law impacts on clinical practice (Leslie Hamilton)

By the end of this session participants will:

• be aware of the potential criminal charges which might be brought against the hospital and a doctor
• know the definition of gross negligence manslaughter
• understand the role of the Coroner, the Police and the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service)
• be aware of the outcome of recent cases.

Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service and the GMC: The regulatory role of the MPTS and the GMC (Heidi Mounsey)

By the end of this session participants will understand:

• The role of the MPTS in the regulation of doctors' practice
• How the MPTS is linked to the GMC
• What functions are delegated to the MPTS from the GMC
• The burden of proof in MPTS proceedings

Patients who refuse blood transfusion on religious grounds:  Current medico-legal considerations in the orthopaedic management of Jehovah's Witnesses (Simon Britten)

 By the end of this session participants will be sufficiently informed to:

• To develop an understanding of why transfusions are refused by Jehovah's Witnesses
• To consider the tensions in law between the clinician's duty to preserve life and duty to respect the patient's right to autonomy
• To familiarise the participant with the Advance Decision Document
• To understand which blood components are refused, and which are up to the  individual choice of the Witness
• To understand how to proceed in cases of minors who may consider declining blood
• The role of the Hospital Liaison Committee of Jehovah's Witnesses

Introduction to coronial law and coroner’s court: This session will give participants an understanding of the coronial system and how this interacts with medicine. (Leila Benyounes)

The aim of the session is to reduce the mystique behind the coronial system and provide confidence when dealing with coroners and attending the inquest.

By the end of this session participants will understand:

• When the coroner needs to be involved in your medical practice
• The steps taken between reporting a matter to a coroner and an inquest being held
• What happens at an inquest
• Common issues that arise with medics at inquests

Confidentiality and Data Protection: The importance of confidentiality in medical care and its ethical and legal basis. (Simon Britten)

By the end of this session participants will understand:

• The ethical and legal basis of confidentiality
• Regulation of confidentiality and the Information Commissioner's Office
• Case law - X v Y and W v Egdell
• The Data Protection Act and GDPR
• Caldicott Principles

Clinical negligence: This session looks at the criteria to be fulfilled in order to prove clinical negligence with examples of case law. (Shyam Kumar)

By the end of this session participants will understand:

• Criteria to be fulfilled to prove a case of medical negligence (Duty of care, Breach of Duty, Breach of duty leading to harm).
• Exceptions in practice where 100% results are expected.
• When does the doctor patient relationship (duty of care) come into being?
• Are doctors the only staff sued for negligence?
• Expert opinion has to withstand logical scrutiny (Bolitho v City and Hackney Health Authority (1997)
• Inexperience -law requires that the trainee or the learner to be judged by the same standard as his more experienced colleagues-Wilsher vs Essex (1988)
• Loss of chance case – inability to achieve full recovery.

Safe social media for doctors (Heidi Mounsey)

By the end of this session participants will understand:

• The risks of engaging with social media as a doctor
• GMC guidance
• The online disinhibition effect
• Case studies