Clinical Practice Guidelines

Health care providers are, most of the time, trusted with the lives of human being. In such scenario, it becomes mandatory for them to be cautious and attentive while treating their patients. While treatment of the patients, doctors and other medicine professionals face situations where they have to take difficult decisions and go through considerable uncertainties. For taking these decisions, they rely on the old medical history and reports. They also apply their knowledge, experience and patient preferences, before reaching to any conclusion.

The Government and other authorities of states want to assist the practitioners of medicine in taking the appropriate decision by drafting Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs). CPGs are statements that include recommendations for optimizing the care provided to the patients under treatment. According to the guideline, patients and their family need to be informed all the time. They should be aware of the exact systematic review of evidence and an assessment of the benefits and harms of alternative care options. In case a medical professional or an institution rendering such service fails to adhere to these guidelines and some unfortunate incidence happens to the patient, a case of medical malpractice arises.

Medical Malpractice

It is the situation that occurs when a health care provider violates the governing standard of care while providing treatment to a patient. Medical malpractice/ negligence can cause the patient to suffer an unexpected injury. It can result from an action taken by the medical practitioner, or by the failure to take a medically appropriate action.

Examples of such an incidence include:

* Misdiagnosis of, or failure to diagnose, a disease or medical condition;

* Failure to provide appropriate treatment for a medical condition;

* Unreasonable delay in treating a diagnosed medical condition;

Medical Malpractice in Maryland [http://www.bwgmarylandlawyers.com/Maryland-Medical-Malpractice.asp]

In Maryland, the rules and regulations regarding malpractice and negligence are very complex. If anyone wants to sue his or her patient with this charge, he/she should opt to have an experienced attorney of Maryland. An attorney can direct you what to do and what not to do while your case is under review.

To bring such complaint in Maryland, the Plaintiff's or the applicant's lawyer must obtain a certificate of merit by a medical doctor. The certificate should state that the negligent doctor breached the standard of care and caused injury to the injured plaintiff. The necessary qualifications of the medical doctor depend on the subject matter of the particular claim.

Under Maryland law, the preliminary requirement for medical doctor who executes a certificate of merit is that:

1) they have clinical experience

2) provided consultation relating to clinical practice

3) taught medicine in the defendant's specialty or a related field of health care or in the field of health care in which the defendant provided care or treatment to the plaintiff