title: Charges of a different kind. Providers say overzealous prosecutors are wrongly trying to transform poor medical judgment into criminal intent.
abstract: Patient-safety advocate Charles Denham, left, is among some in the industry alarmed by a trend toward prosecuting providers in criminal courts for bad care rather than deferring to the civil solutions in outlets such as medical boards. Some fear the criminal cloud could lead to fewer people entering or staying in the field. However, if the caregiver is guilty of gross negligence, Denham says: "Hang 'em".
authors.forename: Gregg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Blesch
mesh_terms: D002140:California; D003415:Crime / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003416:Criminal Law / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D033241:Lawyers; D007883:Legislation, Medical; D016365:Liability, Legal; D008318:Malpractice / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D013038:Specialization; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D014481:United States