Journal of the American College of Radiology : JACR
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The controversy over the role of the "expert" in medical litigation is in some ways the product of semantic confusion. Many physicians mistake the legal definition of an expert with that of ordinary usage, further fueling the resentment of doctors who testify against other doctors. Legally, however, an expert is simply one qualified to offer an opinion. ⋯ Although expert testimony, as defined above, is necessary in most medical malpractice cases, that need is obviated when negligence is so obvious that the law presumes that a lay jury can discover it. Abuses of expert testimony are real. They are, however, in some part the consequence of some of the best doctors' refusal to assist the victims of malpractice, creating a vacuum that the less scrupulous fill.
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During the past 10 years, there have been a number of large health care mergers in which at least one partner has been an academic medical center. This review summarizes the definitions, attributes needed for success, and reasons for failure of mergers. It then describes the various mergers and their outcomes and discusses the impact of the mergers on the involved radiology departments.