Peter Martin Writes “Psychosurgery – Qu’est-Ce Que C’est?” for Worcester Medicine

December 10, 2020

The Worcester District Medical Society published “Psychosurgery – Qu’est-Ce Que C’est?” written by Peter Martin in the November/December 2020 edition of its quarterly publication, Worcester Medicine. In this article, Peter Martin discusses a case between a hospital and a patient, where the patient claims the hospital has breached their contract, but there was no written agreement. Below is an excerpt from the article:

Another question that could be asked at this point is: why is this a contract breach matter and not a medical malpractice action? In bringing a contract action, Vacca may have wanted to avoid certain procedural steps required for medical malpractice claims, such as the initial review of the case by a pre-trial tribunal, and the statutory $100,000 cap on malpractice damages involving a nonprofit provider. In doing so, she was obliged to find a reason other than poor clinical judgment or incompetent care for the harm she alleged, such as the hospital’s desire to exploit her case for the purposes of promoting its psychosurgery program.

Continue reading the full article, “Psychosurgery – Qu’est-Ce Que C’est?“