Lack Of Doctor-Patient Communication May Lead To Lawsuits.

American Medical News (11/16, Gallegos) reports, "Failing to communicate diagnostic test results to patients and fellow physicians is leading to more doctors being sued. Claim payouts due to communication breakdowns after tests rose by $70 million from 1991 to 2010 across all specialties," according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Radiology. "Of the cases studied, the most common scenarios associated with communication problems were failure to notify the patient of the test result, telling the patient of an incorrect result and failing to notify the referring clinician." The study suggests that using electronic systems, which "are designed to reduce missed notifications by alerting referring clinicians of results and generating delivery receipts," may improve communication.