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Hindsight bias in medicolegal expert reports

Peter C Arnold
Med J Aust 2002; 176 (10): . || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2002.tb04533.x
Published online: 20 May 2002

To the Editor: It is possible to diminish bias, especially in litigation concerning general practitioners.1 First, request all the defendant's clinical notes about the patient, not merely the records of the incident. Then, before reading the allegations or the history following the incident, read the entire history of the patient's contacts with the doctor or the practice: frequency of attendances, nature of complaints, details of history and examination, referrals for tests or second opinions — all give insight into the nature of that patient–doctor relationship.




Correspondence: parnold@ozemail.com.au

Competing interests:

P C A, at the request of both plaintiffs and defendants, provides expert opinions for the courts.

  • 1. Hugh TB, Tracy GD. Hindsight bias in medicolegal expert reports. Med J Aust 2002; 176: 277-278. <eMJA Full text>

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