• Kuan-Han Wu, Hsien-Hung Cheng, Fu-Jen Cheng, Chien-Hung Wu, Pai-Chun Yen, Yung-Lin Yen, and Te-Yao Hsu.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, No. 123, Dapi Rd, Niaosong Township, Kaohsiung County 833, Taiwan.
• Int J Qual Health Care. 2016 Feb 1; 28 (1): 47-52.

ObjectiveTo examine the epidemiologic data of closed medical claims from Taiwanese civil courts against obstetric departments and identify high-risk diseases.DesignA retrospective descriptive study.Setting/Study ParticipantsThe verdicts from the national database of the Taiwan judicial system that pertained to obstetric departments were reviewed. Between 2003 and 2012, a total of 79 closed medical claims were included.Main Outcome MeasuresThe epidemiologic data of litigations including the results of adjudication and the disease and outcome of the alleged injury.ResultsA majority of the disputes (65.9%) were fetus-related. Four disease categories accounted for 78.5% of all claims including (i) perinatal maternal complications (25.3%); (ii) errors in antenatal screening or ultrasound diagnoses (21.5%); (iii) fetal hypoxemic-ischemia encephalopathy (16.5%); and (iv) brachial plexus injury (15.2%). Six cases (7.6%) resulted in an indemnity payment with a mean amount of $109 205. Fifty-one cases (64.6%) were closed in the district court. The mean incident-to-litigation closure time was 52.9 ± 29.3 months. All cases with indemnity payments were deemed negligent or were at least determined to be controversial by a medical appraisal, while all defendants whose care was judged as appropriate by a medical appraisal won their lawsuits.ConclusionsAlmost 93% of clinicians win their cases but spend 4.5 years waiting for final adjudication. The court ruled against the clinician only if there was no appropriate response during a complication or if there was no follow-up or further testing for potential critical diseases.© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care; all rights reserved.

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