Legal Medicine
Volume 12, Issue 6 , Pages 296-299 , November 2010

Attitudes regarding reporting healthcare-associated patient deaths to the police: A nationwide survey of physicians and RMs in Japanese teaching hospitals

  • Shoichi Maeda

      Affiliations

    • Graduate School of Health Management, Keio University, 4411 Endo, Fujisawa, Kanagawa 252-8530, Japan
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel./fax: +81 466 49 6251.
    • ,
  • Etsuko Kamishiraki

      Affiliations

    • Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka City, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan
    • ,
  • Jay Starkey

      Affiliations

    • University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, 9500 Gilman Drive, 0742, La Jolla, CA 92093-0742, USA
    • ,
  • Noriaki Ikeda

      Affiliations

    • Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka City, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan

Received 12 July 2010 ,Revised 5 August 2010 ,Accepted 6 August 2010.

References 

  1. Fujimiya T. Legal medicine and the death inquiry system in Japan: a comparative study. Legal Medicine. 2009;11:S6–S8
  2. Ronald E, Leonard B. When does malpractice become manslaughter?. American Journal of Roentgenology. 2002;179:331–335
  3. Ranson D. Coroners’ autopsies: quality concerns in the United Kingdom. Journal of Law and Medicine. 2007;14(3):315–318
  4. Starkey J, Maeda S. Doctor as criminal: reporting of patient deaths to the police and criminal prosecution of healthcare providers in Japan. BMC Health Services Research. 2010;10:53
  5. Higuchi N. Article 21 of the Medical Practitioners Law. JMAJ. 2008;51(4):258–261
  6. Ministry of Health, Labor & Welfare. Hospital list of the government’s residency program. See http://www.mhlw.go.jp/topics/bukyoku/isei/rinsyo/shitei/dl/070913b.pdf (last checked 1 July 2010).
  7. Higuchi N. Medicine and law reconsidered (in Japanese). Tokyo: yuuhikaku; 2007;p. 24
  8. Leflar RB. ‘Unnatural deaths’, criminal sanctions, and medical quality improvement in Japan. Yale J Health Policy Law Ethics. 2009;9:1–51
  9. Takayama K. The professional obligation to report any unusual deaths to the police (in Japanese). In:  Utsugi S,  Machino S,  Hirabayshi K,  Kai K editor. Significant legal cases for clinical medicine and medical science research. Tokyo: Yuhikaku; 2006;p. 8–9
  10. Maeda S: The study of medical malpractice criminal litigation in Japan. Japan Medical Association Research Institute 2004.

PII: S1344-6223(10)00118-5

doi: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2010.08.001

Legal Medicine
Volume 12, Issue 6 , Pages 296-299 , November 2010

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