9.14 Strategic Planning

• Library: Medical Malpractice Law in Virginia (Virginia CLE) (2017 Ed.)

9.14 STRATEGIC PLANNING

9.1401 In General. Defending a healthcare provider ¹⁰³ brings unique stresses and satisfaction. Almost invariably, the defendant is a well-meaning, devoted professional. To make it through the gauntlet of professional education and training, the defendant has proven to be very intelligent, focused, and diligent. Most providers spend their careers honing skills and trying to do their best, at great personal sacrifice. Unfortunately, these virtues come with burdens. The healthcare provider is likely to be far more distraught at being named a defendant than a lay person would anticipate. Since many physicians and other professionals measure their self-worth by their professional standing, a medical malpractice lawsuit can be devastating. It is not unusual to hear a physician proclaim that it is no longer worth

[Page 483]

practicing or that the lawsuit has overwhelmed his or her thoughts and personal life. Some live in fear of adverse publicity that may be generated from a trial. Nevertheless, many physicians have reported that the majority of their patients are very supportive of the physician when they hear or read about the physician's involvement in a medical malpractice case.

With these considerations in mind, a defense attorney must first spend time counseling the client about the litigation process and the impact of potential outcomes. As trial approaches, that conversation needs to be renewed and focused on the trial process and the provider's important role in that process. Taking a first-time defendant to the courtroom to observe a hearing and letting the defendant sit at counsel table and in the witness chair can have tremendous salutary effects.

It may be comforting for the healthcare provider to know that defendants win a very high percentage of medical malpractice trials. However, as with most statistics, this fact has...