Standard of Care and Malpractice

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=160 BGCOLOR="#333333" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="03cdedc2ddualp.png"> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Dr. Wade Silverman, Ph.D"><U><B>Dr. Wade Silverman, Ph.D</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Us"><U><B>Contact Us</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id147.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="FAQs"><U><B>FAQs</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Dr. Silverman"><U><B>About Dr. Silverman</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id146.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Great links"><U><B>Great links</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Mind Reader© archive"><U><B>The Mind Reader© archive</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="03d64643.png"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#666633" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B>Dr. Wade Silverman, Ph.D</B></FONT>    |     <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#0000BF" FACE="Times New Roman" ><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Dr. Wade Silverman, Ph.D"><U>home</U></A></FONT></div> <div>                                                   </div> <div> Standard of Care and Malpractice</div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> Standard of Care and Malpractice</div> <div> As consumers, each of us wants the best service that we can possibly obtain.  This is particularly true when we seek mental health care. As professionals we want to be represented by a standard of excellence. Yet, in a courtroom the gauge for assessing professional practice is set at "reasonable" or "standard". When a consultant reviews the delivery of mental health services he/she is asked to ascertain whether these services met standard of care criteria. That is, did the judgment and skill exhibited fall within the usual standard for such circumstances. Would the average provider be expected to perform like this? </div> <div> Another way of asking about standard of care is to ascertain whether "reasonable" efforts were made to diagnosis and treat the patient. There are no definitive treatment protocols in the fields of psychology or psychiatry. One can, however, find a vast array of treatment guidelines that are intended to serve only as recommendations. They are introduced with a caveat that they are subject to varying treatment conditions and to the good judgment of the clinician. Psychology is much more definitive in its approach to ethics in that it does delineate a standard for all practicing psychologists (e.g., do not have sex with your patient; ensure, to the best of your ability, the confidentiality of the patient; try to avoid conflicts of interest; use generally accepted procedures in your treatment). </div> <div> Nevertheless, just as "all politics is local," standard of care criteria are generally defined by the local community rather than some national representation. In this locale, the Dade County Psychological Association or the Florida Psychological Association are excellent sources for obtaining information on these issues. Needless to say there is a lot of imprecision in defining standard of care.  For more information, you can call Dr. Wade H. Silverman at (305) 669-3605.</div> <bR> <div> Dr. Wade Silverman operates a private practice of psychology for adults, adolescents and families.  He has also served as an expert witness in competency evaluations, custody evaluations, sexual discrimination claims, and claims of post-traumatic stress disorder.  He is president of the Division of Psychotherapy of the American Psychological Association, and editor of the journal,<I> Psychotherapy: Theory/ Research/ Practice/ Training</I>.  His office is located at 1390 S. Dixie Highway, Ste. 2222, Coral Gables, FL 33146.   </div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>