foreign object. An item that appears where it does not belong; esp., an item introduced into a living body, such as a sponge that is left in a patient’s body during surgery. • The discovery rule usu. tolls the statute of limitations for a medical-malpractice claim based on a foreign object. — Also termed foreign […]
A statutory lien asserted by a hospital to recover the costs of emergency and ongoing medical and other services. • The lien applies against any judgment, compromise, or settlement received by a hospital patient either from a third person who caused the patient’s injuries or from the third person’s insurer. See healthcare lien.
expectation, n. 1. The act of looking forward; anticipation. 2. A basis on which something is expected to happen; esp., the prospect of receiving wealth, honors, or the like. “[E]xpectation does not in itself amount to intention. An operating surgeon may know very well that his patient will probably die of the operation; yet he
last-treatment rule. The doctrine that, for an ongoing physician–patient relationship, the statute of limitations on a medical-malpractice claim begins to run when the treatment stops or the relationship ends. [Cases: Limitation of Actions 55(3). C.J.S. Limitations of Actions §§ 159, 166, 171–175; Physicians, Surgeons, and Other Health-Care Providers § 108.]
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serious health condition. Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, an illness, injury, or physical or mental state that involves inpatient care or continuing treatment by a healthcare provider for several days. • Excluded from the definition are cosmetic treatments and minor illnesses that are not accompanied by medical complications.
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desuetude (des-w[schwa]-t[y]ood). 1. Lack of use; obsolescence through disuse. 2. The doctrine holding that if a statute or treaty is left unenforced long enough, the courts will no longer regard it as having any legal effect even though it has not been repealed. [Cases: Statutes 173. C.J.S. Statutes § 292.] “[T]he doctrine of desuetude has
Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. A 1994 federal statute that provides for criminal sanctions, private civil causes of action, and civil action by the U.S. Attorney General against a person who uses force, threat of force, or physical obstruction to injure, intimidate, or interfere with a provider or patient of reproductive services or
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substituted-judgment doctrine. A principle that allows a surrogate decision-maker to attempt to establish, with as much accuracy as possible, what decision an incompetent patient would make if he or she were competent to do so. • The standard of proof is by clear and convincing evidence. Generally, the doctrine is used for a person who
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emergency doctrine. 1. A legal principle exempting a person from the ordinary standard of reasonable care if that person acted instinctively to meet a sudden and urgent need for aid. — Also termed imminent-peril doctrine; sudden-emergency doctrine; sudden-peril doctrine. [Cases: Negligence 291. C.J.S. Negligence §§ 69–73.] 2. A legal principle by which consent to medical
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continuous-treatment doctrine. The principle that the limitations period for bringing a medical-malpractice action is tolled while the patient continues treatment that is related to the negligent act or omission. [Cases: Limitation of Actions 55(3). C.J.S. Limitations of Actions §§ 159, 166, 171–175; Physicians, Surgeons, and other Health–Care Providers § 108.]
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