Page 40 - Part 1 Collaborating with Advanced Practice Providers - An Overview of State Rules

SVMIC Collaborating with Advanced Practice Providers

what hope is there for the average person seeking medical care?
It is the responsibility of the medical practitioner to contact the

licensing agency and ensure the existence of the license of those

in his or her employment.”
26 27

Dr. Khan also argued that he didn’t intentionally hire an

unlicensed practitioner. However, the applicable statute was

clear that if a licensed person hires an unlicensed person as an
employee to perform treatment of the sick, the licensed person

would be guilty of aiding and abetting unlicensed practice with

no intent requirement. This finding could arguably be applied
28
to other situations where physicians inappropriately delegate or

allow staff to practice beyond the scope of his or her education,

training or competence.

As discussed in a recent Medscape article , the second-largest
29
malpractice award in US history focused directly on how a medical

practice credentialed and supervised a PA. Although the facts in

the cases are unique, they can provide lessons for all physicians
who work with non-physician providers.

CASE STUDY

In 2007, a jury in Tampa, Florida, awarded $217 million,

including $100 million in punitive damages, to a man whose

cerebellar stroke was misdiagnosed as sinusitis at a hospital
ED in 2000. The then-44-year-old mechanic presented with

26 Khan v Medical Board of California 16 Cal. Rptr 2d 385, 392 (Cal. App. 1993).
27 Feld AD, Moses, R, Physician Liability for Medical Errors of Nonphysician Clinicians: Nurse Practitioners and
Physician Assistants, Am J Gastroenterol 2007;102:6–9
28 Khan v Medical Board of California 16 Cal. Rptr 2d 385, 392 (Cal. App. 1993).
29 http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/775746_3

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