Physiotherapists indemnity & liability insurance

Guild Insurance regularly manages claims where a patient has been treated by more than one practitioner. This has led Guild to explore how treatment by multiple practitioners may contribute to complaints by patients which can lead to an insurance claim.

Evaluating another practitioner’s work

It’s quite likely that many natural therapy practitioners will at times treat a patient who’s previously been treated by another natural therapy practitioner.  And in some of these cases the practitioner may have questions about that previous treatment, such as when:

• the treatment may not seem to be up to the appropriate standard,
• the treatment selected may not appear the be the most ideal or obvious choice, or
• it may seem as though the treatment provided has not led to the intended or expected outcome.

Practitioners must be very mindful of how they handle these situations and what they say to or in front of the patient.  It’s understandable that to provide treatment the practitioner will want an understanding of prior treatment.  However, conversations about another practitioner’s treatment, if not conducted appropriately, may contribute to the patient lodging a complaint against that other practitioner.

How can these complaints be avoided?

• Don’t make comments to a patient judging the treatment another practitioner has provided.  It’s possible that the clinical situation you’re seeing is not the same as what the first practitioner saw.  Also, if the patient has told you what their treatment consisted of, it’s possible they might be incorrect due to their lack of clinical knowledge.  Making even what you see as a small or insignificant comment to a patient regarding the choice and quality of treatment provided by another practitioner could be enough to encourage that patient to make a complaint.

• If you’re seeing a patient for the first time, be careful to not fall into the trap of simply relying on the patient telling you what their previous treatment entailed or just relying on previous patient records.  You need to have a thorough understanding of the patient’s condition; only then can you decide what therapy will be most appropriate.

• If you’ve taken over the treatment of a patient from another practitioner whose health records are insufficient, you may need to spend some time doing further assessment before continuing with their ‘usual’ treatment. It’s advisable to engage the patient in a positive conversation on why you’re doing that, to manage their expectations.

• Managing patient expectations from the outset is vital.  Make patients aware of what to expect from their treatment; they won’t want surprises.  The more they understand about their treatment and likely outcomes, the less likely they are to be dissatisfied and look elsewhere for treatment.

• Building relationships with patients is an important element in running a successful practice.  Get to know your patients and give them a reason to trust you and come back to you. 

• Patients can become frustrated with ongoing costs of treatment, especially if they aren’t seeing the benefit they’d expected.  Always be open and upfront about the cost of treatment.  And where possible, let them know how many treatment sessions you anticipate they’ll require to achieve the anticipated outcome. 

• Documentation is vital! The key to dealing with a dissatisfied patient who’s considering making a claim or complaint against you is your accurate health records.  If your work is being questioned by a patient, or another practitioner, you’ll need a record of the facts behind your decision making.

• Avoid offering refunds or free treatments in the event of a poor or unexpected outcome.  This may be seen by the patient as an admission of responsibility or liability and they may expect that discounted or free treatments will continue.  Always contact Guild Insurance on 1800 810 213 before offering any form of compensation to a patient.

And finally, maintain a high level of professional and appropriate behaviour at all times, both when treating patients and anytime you’re communicating and interacting with them.  This not only reflects well on you, it can also improve the public perception of natural therapy as a profession. 

Download PDF here.