Every dentist should know about PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE [PII] / PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE [PLI] more commonly known as ERRORS AND OMISSIONS [E&O] IN US. In common language it is called as DENTAL MAL-PRACTICE INSURANCE.
Dentist fined ten thousand Dollars (10000 $) for putting 8 crowns on toddler’s teeth 1
A court in Chandigarh on Tuesday denied anticipatory bail to a dentist 2
Consumer form fines rupees 2 lakhs for a dentist regarding faulty treatment. This was a case in 2015, which was filed in consumer forum 3
As
a dental practitioner, how do you feel when you read this? Goose bumps right.
Consumer
laws are becoming more stringent in India. The awareness regarding consumer
laws and their legal issues among public is on the upside. With the advent of
Dental tourism, situations are becoming more complex on one side. On the other
side, cases related to professional negligence are becoming more day by day. This
is the right time, that a dentist should know how to protect himself from such
conditions.
PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE
Yes!
Always be prepared to face the worst. Dental practice in the present situation
should be dealt with at most care. Dentist should be prepared to face any
situation in his/her clinic. He is the sole person answerable to his patients,
when any untoward incident happens in the clinic.
A
study conducted in UK revealed that 89% of dentists fear of being sued. 77% of dentists
say that this fear has added stress and insecurity into their lifestyle. Out of
them 74% feel that this fear is showing impact on the way they practice
dentistry. As a result 64% of them started referring their patients to higher
centres 4.
Though
the statistics look fascinating, they are the real metrics and as a dentist I
too face this situation in my regular dental practice. I think the same with
you. These increasing fears in day to day dentistry hamper the functioning
capacity of a dentist.
So! How can we solve this issue?
In
such scenario every dentist should know about PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE
[PII] / PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCE [PLI] more commonly known as ERRORS
AND OMISSIONS [E&O] IN US. In common language it is called as DENTAL MAL-PRACTICE INSURANCE.
In today’s world the legal lawsuits filed over
professionals demand higher/premium compensations, where the fellow dentist
finds it very difficult to repay it.
HENCE PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY IS A MUST FOR EVERY DENTAL PRACTITIONER.
WHAT DOES PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY
INSURANCE MEAN?
Professional
indemnity is an insurance type which helps in protecting, professional advice
and service-providing companies or individuals, from bearing full cost or
defending against a negligence claim made by client, and damages awarded in
such civil lawsuit 5. In simple terms it comes to rescue,
whenever a dentist is under legal surveillance regarding, issues related to his
or her treatments.
PII
OR PLI is still in novice stage in countries like India. Hence there is a need
to educate each and every doctor and dentist regarding it. So, let’s go into
details.
WHO NEEDS PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE: [Readers kindly bear that form now where ever you read PII consider it as indemnity insurance] :
Well,
all professionals like Doctors, lawyers, Engineers, Architects, accountants, contractors, and accountants
can avail PII or PLI. Even professional organizations like hospitals, clinics,
Law firms and consultancy services can opt for PII.
LEADING
ORGANIZATIONS THAT PROVIDE PII:
In
India there are many insurance companies that provide PII. Here is a list of
few online professional indemnity insurance providers:
- NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY
- UNITED INDIA INSURANCE
- ICICI LOMBARD
- NEW INDIA INSURANCE
- TATA AIG
- HDFC ERGO
- BAJAJ ALLIANZ
BENEFITS
OF PII:
Understanding
the benefits of PII helps every fellow dental practitioner to go for
Professional indemnity.
The
policy covers claims for professional negligence and legal issues arising from
errors or omissions causing damage to the client or patient (or patient’s
property) during a procedure or service.
The
policy also provides financial support for defense proceedings in the court,
which will be included in the sum insured.
Even grade employees like dental assistants, and attenders can also be included in the insurance.
SITUATIONS WHERE PII CANNOT BE APPLICABLE OR
USED
Are there any situations where the insurance companies reject providing PII to dentists or insured professionals?
The answer is YES!
- Generally the consumer forum cases, where a client or patient files a case on a specific professional firm, is considered as a civil case. Such So called “CIVIL CASES”, are usually dealt to the concerned insurance company and after the judgment, if required, the insurance company pays amount to the third party (client/patient).
- But if the case has a criminal angle into it, and when the court considers it as a ”CRIMINAL OFFENCE”, then the insurance company has full right to reject indemnity proposal.
- In conditions where the dentist is found to violate the law, then the same scenario can be expected from the concerned insurance company. Here are few scenarios where the claim can be rejected by the respective insurance company.
- If the dentist is found to be on drugs or alcohol, then he cannot claim indemnity.
- Any treatment conditions associated with AIDS.
- Copyright and trade name infringements.
- If a dentist fails to act according to the statutory regulations of his/her governing body, then the claim can be rejected.
- In war or terrorism activities.
These
are few limitations of professional indemnity insurance. For more details you
can check the specific insurance company documents before signing them.
In conclusion I would like to say that PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY is the best mal-practice insurance for dentists.
So
I think, you gained some information on Professional indemnity for dentists.
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