To create a medical legal curriculum instructing resident physicians how to 1) understand malpractice law 2) recognize and manage medical errors 3) more effectively and compassionately communicate 4) obtain informed consent and 5) utilize resources available for physicians.

Medical ethics has become a requirement of medical education; however, medical law is not required and is a gap in current residency training. In order for residents to develop into well-rounded, successful physicians, a medical law background is essential to better prepare for the multitude of difficult situations that arise to better serve patients.

The curriculum was created in multidisciplinary approach with Stanford’s risk-management department. Residents completed pre and post session surveys to assess their comfort and knowledge with medical legal issues.

Pre and post session surveys were completed by internal medicine (n=23) and neurology (n=13) residents. Before the initial session, the majority of residents rated their comfort level regarding the basic concepts of medical law, as well as their comfort regarding handling unanticipated outcomes, as “poor” or “fair” (78%, 18/23, SE 0.09 for both). Following the session, the majority of residents “agree” or “strongly agree” that they were more comfortable with malpractice law (73%, 16/22, SE 0.09), that they learned new ways to handle unexpected outcomes (82%, 18/22, SE 0.08).  They also felt more comfortable mitigating risk in their own daily practice (77%, 17/22, SE 0.09). A large majority would want the lecture next year and would recommend the curriculum to colleagues (91%, 20/22, SE 0.06 for both).

A formal education curriculum allows residents to ask questions and learn strategies on how to navigate the medical legal system in a low-pressure practice environment. We plan on further developing this curriculum as well as expanding to other specialties.