The following websites may be helpful to physicians after an adverse event or during litigation. The range of resources suggests the universality of the problem of stress associated with this event and some of the remedies available.
Insurance Companies
Some insurers have Stress Reduction Programs and other services to support physicians. Among the companies that provide materials on their website, some are downloadable for any visitor; others provide materials only for those physicians and other health care professionals they insure.
Norcal Mutual Insurance Company publishes a downloadable newsletter, ClaimsRX, that covers a variety of relevant topics.
MAG Mutual (www.magmutual.com) offers a list of articles on litigation stress by using the phrase "litigation stress" in the search section on the home page.
Medical Insurance Exchange of California (www.miec.com) has a newsletter on the litigation process. Non-members can go to www.miec.com and visit the Publications section under the "Manage Your Risk" tab. By scrolling down to "Newsletters - Public Access," one can review several newsletters, including "When trouble comes knockin' ... What to do when legal papers arrive." The company is affiliated with the Alameda-Contra Costa County Medical Society that has a Stress of Litigation Committee that meets semi-annually and whose members serve as a resource to medical society members and MIEC policy holders.
Medical Mutual Insurance Company of Maine (www.medicalmutual.com) offers a Claims Litigation support site for physicians that features attractive short videos on the subject of support.
MedAmericaMutual (www.medamericamutual.com), is an insurer for emergency medicine physicians that offers Claims and Litigation Stress and Education Resources sections that list a series of downloadable publications.
Medical Mutual Liability Insurance Society of Maryland provides free access to Doctors RX Risk Management Newsletter. An online stress management program is available for "members only."
Ophthalmic Mutual Insurance Company (www.omic.com) has an extensive risk management program with popular materials such as the Deposition Handbook and Litigation Handbook in .pdf format that are available to all visitors. Use the direct links provided, or, from the OMIC home page, click on Risk Management, then Claims.
Physician Insurers Association of America (PIAA) (www.thepiaa.org) is a trade association of more than 50 professional liability insurance companies owned and operated by physicians and dentists. A review of recent PIAA press releases affords readers a good overview of current liability insurance issues.
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