title: Clinical guidelines and their civil law effects.
abstract: The number of clinical guidelines or protocols for medical treatment is growing. Considered as an important instrument for increasing the quality of medicine, these originally intended technical guidelines turn out to influence doctor's civil liability. Ignoring those guidelines in itself may cause a breach of a doctor's duty of care according to civil law and he may be charged to produce evidence that his medical treatment was correct. This development is taking place in several countries as France, Germany, United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
authors.affiliation: University of Rotterdam, The Department of Health Policy and Management.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hulst
mesh_terms: D005060:Europe; D006801:Humans; D016365:Liability, Legal; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*