How different countries respond to adverse events whilst patients' rights are protected.

Patient safety is high on the policy agenda internationally. Learning from safety incidents is a core component in achieving the important goal of increasing patient safety. This study explores the legal frameworks in the countries to promote reporting, disclosure, and supporting healthcare professionals (HCPs) involved in safety incidents.

The Impact of Incident Disclosure Behaviors on Medical Malpractice Claims.

Objectives: To provide preliminary estimates of incident disclosure behaviors on medical malpractice claims.

Methods: We conducted a descriptive analysis of data on medical malpractice claims obtained from the Controlled Risk Insurance Company and Risk Management Foundation of Harvard Medical Institutions (Cambridge, Massachusetts) between 2012 and 2013 (n = 434). The characteristics of disclosure and apology after medical errors were analyzed.

Eleven-year descriptive analysis of closed court verdicts on medical errors in Spain and Massachusetts.

Objectives: To evaluate and compare the characteristics of court verdicts on medical errors allegedly harming patients in Spain and Massachusetts from 2002 to 2012.

Design, Setting And Participants: We reviewed 1041 closed court verdicts obtained from data on litigation in the Thomson Reuters Aranzadi Westlaw databases in Spain (Europe), and 370 closed court verdicts obtained from the Controlled Risk and Risk Management Foundation of Harvard Medical Institutions (CRICO/RMF) in Massachusetts (USA). We included closed court verdicts on medical errors.

[Analysis of barriers and legal-ethical opportunities for disclosure and apology for medical errors in Spain].

Objective: To identify opportunities for disclosing information on medical errors in Spain and issuing an apology, as well as legal-ethical barriers.

Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted through a questionnaire sent to health law and bioethics experts (n=46).

Results: A total of 39 experts (84.

A retrospective review of medical errors adjudicated in court between 2002 and 2012 in Spain.

Objectives: This paper describes verdicts in court involving injury-producing medical errors in Spain.

Design, Setting And Participants: A descriptive analysis of 1041 closed court verdicts from Spain between January 2002 and December 2012. It was determined whether a medical error had occurred, and among those with medical error (n = 270), characteristics and results of litigation were analyzed.

[Perspective of nursing students on the communication and apologies to patients for adverse events: a descriptive study].

Objectives: To describe the approach to the communication and blame of an adverse by nursing students.

Method: A descriptive study on disclosure and apologies for adverse events by nursing students in the academic years 2011-12 and 2012-13. The study included group discussion and drafting a written communication to the injured patient about adverse events during hospitalization.

[Assessing the economic impact of adverse events in Spanish hospitals by using administrative data].

Objective: To evaluate the incidence and costs of adverse events registered in an administrative dataset in Spanish hospitals from 2008 to 2010.

Methods: A retrospective study was carried out that estimated the incremental cost per episode, depending on the presence of adverse events. Costs were obtained from the database of the Spanish Network of Hospital Costs.