Healthcare Professional Indemnity Insurance

The provision of healthcare is no longer restricted to just Medical Practitioners. Many Practitioners are now assisted by Nurses, Practice Managers, Receptionists & other healthcare professionals in the day to day operations of a primary or secondary health setting. In an age where many of us are time poor these people are an important part of a healthcare team & will have contact with patients as part of their day to day work; often assisting with or performing procedures & in some cases dealing directly with patient enquiries. Add to this the complexity of operational structures and ownership arrangements, and the need for a quality professional indemnity policy to protect staff and the organisation is becoming a necessity.

The Medisure Professional Indemnity policy range is appropriate for a variety of healthcare settings. For example, General Practices, Specialist Clinics, Day Hospitals and even small Private Hospitals. The policy responds to civil claims for compensation and the associated legal expenses as a result of a breach of the professional duty by the policy holder, including vicarious liability for contractors and medical practitioners providing healthcare services. 

This policy can cover:

  • Civil Liability Policy for Primary or Secondary Healthcare Entities
  • Privacy Complaints
  • Public Relations Expenses
  • Official Investigations Costs & Expenses
  • Cover for the Trade Practices Breaches
  • Intellectual Property Breaches
  • Fraud & Fidelity

To download fact sheets and application forms, go to the technical library. For a copy of the PDS please call Medisure on (07) 3184 5300

Technical Library

Who We Can Cover

This policy is perfect for:

Primary Healthcare:

  • Medical / Dental Clinics
  • Allied Health Clinics

Secondary Healthcare:

  • Specialist Clinic (eg. cardiology)
  • Day Surgery / Hospital
  • Small Private Hospitals

 

Policy Overview

What Are The Risks?

Internal Policy

Failure of internal process and procedures ie. patient recall systems and privacy breaches.

Regulatory

Healthcare is a heavily regulated sector. Investigations, enquiries and civil proceedings can arise from a number of areas. I.e.: Medicare Australia, AHPRA, State and National Health Ombudsman and HCCC.

Contractors

Vicarious Liability will likely attach to a contracting or contracted entity when a healthcare provider breaches a duty of care owned by your business.

Employees

As an employer you are responsible for the healthcare your employees provide. Civil compensation claims involving errors in administration and employed Allied Healthcare providers have risen sharply in the past few years. This trend is likely to continue.

Case Study

A long-term patient of this medical practice presented in 2009, complaining of feeling ‘generally unwell’ for some time. During the consultation the patient stated that he had, on occasion, noticed blood during bowel movements. Doctor A immediately organised numerous tests for the patient. Within days Doctor A left the practice to work elsewhere. The test returned a potential positive for bowel cancer. The patient was not recalled by the Practice for additional tests as was the normal internal policy. The patient presented several more times over a number of months and was seen by 2 other Doctors, B & C. Neither B nor C alerted the patient to the need to do further tests and the patient’s condition continued to deteriorate.

The patient eventually found and visited Doctor A at another practice; he was re-tested and diagnosed with a low grade bowel cancer. The patient initiated a Personal Injury claim against Doctors B & C and the original Medical Practice. After a number of conciliation meetings, the claim was settled for $300,000. $100,000 of this was deemed to be the Practice’s liability or contribution and their legal expenses amounted to $192,000.

 

Policy Limits

The policy range is designed to be flexible offering policy limits from $1,000,000 to $20,000,000 and additional reinstatements if required.

Further Information

To download fact sheets and application forms, go to the technical library. For a copy of the PDS please call Medisure on (07) 3184 5300

Technical Library

Medisure for Brokers

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