| Abstract [eng] |
All over the world we observe a tendency for the increase of claims for damages of treatment that will with no doubt come to Lithuania. The establishment of the institute of doctor and patient was influenced by the science of ethics, law and medicine. The fact that these sciences were underestimated when discussing doctors’ liability as well as improper legal regulation and explanation of normative legal acts formed by courts are the main factors that brought “defensive medicine” in practice, that makes a lot of harm to the formation of the health care system financial recourses and puts the patients in the risk of getting additional damage. Thoughtful and attentive doctors’ duties and “defensive medicine” is separated by a hairline which is easy to trespass. The incoherence of the health care legal regulations in Lithuania, the non-existence of united doctors’ ethic code, the unfulfilled concept of diagnosis and treatment bring a danger of emerging new problems in applying the civil liability. A standard of most attentive, careful and qualified doctor treatment is established in court practice. It has to change taking into consideration the worldwide court practice and particularities of medicine as that sets unrealistic and impracticable criteria, which makes base for misapplication of doctors’ civil liability. Differently from the clear criteria for the evaluation of the institute of patient information, the establishment of causality in cases of doctors’ civil liability gives a real headache. The damage that emerges in the process of treatment is influenced by various factors part of which are irrespective of doctors’ will. Special knowledge is needed to properly evaluate various factors. The lack of the knowledge makes the evaluation of the factors that are irrespective of the doctors will inappropriate and makes the application of the doctors’ liability based on the principle “all or nothing”, that deviates from compensatory function of the civil liability. The doctrine of “lost chance” that is being applied by other states courts in cases of doctors’ civil liability might be a better legal instrument to set up justice, that allows to individualize the scope of responsibility. The misapplication of the functions by the governmental institutions allows a whole system of inaccuracy in medicine and stops from providing qualified health services and implementing alternative device to recompense for damages such as insurance of civil liability. Considering the influence of actual circumstances for the damage to be done in some cases the application of state civil liability might be questioned. |
