Malpractice pilot takes center stage at NAVC

ORLANDO — A series on animal law topped The North American Veterinary Conference (NAVC) sessions in January, as more than 5,600 veterinarians assembled in Florida for the five-day meeting.

Highlighting the profession's vulnerability in an increasing litigious society was Dr. James F. Wilson, who facilitated an expert panel including Drs. Charlotte Lacroix, Kevin Kazacos and J. Edward Branam for the "Paw and Order" session. Aided by video vignettes, the panelists explored such legal issues as duty to inform, standard of care, proximate cause and developing procedures that protect practices form potential vulnerability. Merial sponsored the session.

Legal experts kicked off the four-hour panel discussion with a warning: Veterinarians must inform clients about zoonotic risks or face malpractice claims.

Highlighted during the seminar was a series of video vignettes featuring an owner whose dog infected her child with roundworm, which resulted in lost vision. The veterinarian, claiming he verbally informed the client about parasitic risks, was forced to settle the case after a rash of bad press and legal wrangling.

The story is not far fetched, Wilson says.

"Our profession is so unbelievably ignorant of the reality of life," says Wilson, "I'll tell you folks our profession is unprotected, truly unprepared."

For veterinarians, preparing means explaining the zoonotic transmission of parasites in lay terms to clients while documenting the interaction. It's the practitioner's duty to inform, says Lacroix, an attorney with Veterinary Business Advisors in Whitehouse Station, N.J.

"That means teaching how to clean up fecal material, making sure children properly wash their hands," she says.

It also is important to build relationships with physicians, says Kazacos, professor of veterinary parasitology at Purdue University and director of the Clinical Parasitology Laboratory.

"If we can just simply have physicians recognize there are zoonotic diseases associated with animals, I think that the onus shifts over to the veterinarians to provide more information," Kazacos says.

As far as information is concerned, forensic science offers plenty of answers, he adds. Investigators now use it to map parasite DNA and link infection directly to animal sources.

"Science fiction is reality now," Wilson says. "The DNA analysis in human medicine is being applied to veterinary medicine. We have the technology to identify isolates and pathogens."

That's likely to result in malpractice claims, says Branam, with ABD Insurance in California.

"I think we all know the pros and cons of DNA evidence," he says. "It's just a matter of time before veterinarians start to see these cases."

More than 1,200 hours of continuing education rounded out the conference, with 25 programs offered daily apart from evening sessions. NAVC is scheduled for Jan. 7 to Jan. 11 next year.