title: Legal issues of professional negligence in suicide cases.
abstract: Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death, accounting for almost 30,000 deaths each year in the United States. The loss of a patient to suicide is the most feared outcome among mental health professionals, while the fear of litigation and liability after such suicide may be a close second. This article will familiarize mental health professionals with the legal issues of professional negligence in suicide cases. We begin with an introduction to malpractice liability for suicidal patients, followed by an explanation of the essential elements of professional negligence and relevant legal terminology. We then discuss general theories of liability involving suicide, and provide illustrative legal case examples. We conclude with a discussion of risk management procedures that can substantially reduce one's exposure to malpractice liability.
authors.affiliation: Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, Palo Alto, CA 94303, USA. woacjnan@pgsp.edu
authors.forename: Wendy L
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Packman
authors.forename: Tracy O'Connor
authors.initials: TO
authors.lastname: Pennuto
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bongar
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Orthwein
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008318:Malpractice / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D013405:Suicide / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014481:United States