Psychiatrists are well trained to minimize their risks for malpractice, deal with patients who could become violent, and handle other difficult situations, but as the field evolves and standards change, a refresher on the fine points of the law is always useful. At APA’s 2018 Annual Meeting, the APA-endorsed professional liability insurer is presenting three risk management sessions in these important areas.
On Saturday, May 5, Kristen Lambert, J.D., M.S.W., C.P.H.R.M., vice president of risk management, will chair the session “Minimizing Risk in Psychiatry.” She will identify common types of claims, discuss current trends in litigation against psychiatrists, explore issues with documentation and its impact on lawsuits, examine liability issues, provide case examples, and identify risk management strategies to reduce the potential liability exposures associated with practicing psychiatry.
On Tuesday, May 8, as a part of
APA’s Learning Labs, Moira Wertheimer, J.D., R.N., C.P.H.R.M., assistant vice president of Healthcare and Psychiatry Risk Management, will chair the interactive session “Preventing a Crisis Before It Happens: Principles of Nonviolent Crisis Intervention.” Attendees will explore how a crisis develops; learn how their personal verbal, nonverbal, and paraverbal behaviors can affect crises; and learn and role play proven strategies for safely resolving situations at the earliest stage when confronted by anxious, hostile, or violent behaviors. The foundation of this training is the Crisis Prevention Institute’s Crisis Development Model, which uses a series of recognizable behavior levels that individuals may exhibit as a crisis develops. It also teaches corresponding approaches that can be used to intervene and de-escalate a developing crisis.
On Wednesday, May 9, Lambert will chair the third session, “Risk Management Considerations When Practicing Addiction Psychiatry.” Practicing addiction psychiatry requires understanding and treating complex clinical issues. In addition, there are myriad federal and state laws requiring compliance. This session addresses the unique liability risks that may exist for the psychiatrist practicing addiction psychiatry including adherence to federal and state substance use privacy laws, documentation principles, collaboration with other providers, treatment of patients exhibiting noncompliant behaviors, interaction with federal and state agencies, maintainance of appropriate certification and licensure, and the importance of creating and maintaining office policies and procedures. Attendees will explore risk mitigation strategies designed to reduce the potential professional liability exposures associated with practicing addiction psychiatry. ■
