Midwives and Liability: Results of the 2018 National Midwives and Liability Survey

Abstract

Introduction: This is the third national survey about the incidence of midwifery involvement in malpractice litigation, case outcome, methods of coping, and the influence of fear of liability or actual litigation on midwifery practice and professional liability insurance. Incidence of disciplinary action was also included. Methods:A link to a web-based survey was sent to all American College of Nurse-Midwives members with an active email address in January 2018. Students and associate members were excluded from analysis. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of involvement in lawsuit.Results: Of 6199 email links sent, 880 midwives responded (14%). One-third of participants (n = 280, 32%) have been named in at least one lawsuit after a median of 7 years in practice. Claims most often involved intrapartum hospital-based care and resulted from fetal heart rate interpretation. The most common outcome of a case was settlement prior to court or arbitration (n = 117, 42%). Significant predictors of litigation included older age of the midwife and region of practice (increased in Northeastern states, decreased in Midwestern states). Midwives' most common source of emotional support was their attorney. Only 6% (n = 53) of participants experienced disciplinary action against their state license. Half of the actions by a state governing board were unrelated to a lawsuit. Discussion: Midwives may experience litigation the longer they are in practice, but there has not been a significant change in the incidence since the previous survey in 2009. More resources and education are needed for midwives to provide adequate peer support to colleagues following adverse events or when named in a lawsuit. Continued education is also needed for midwives regarding types of professional liability insurance, affordability, and how policy terms and limits influence clinical practice.

Risk Management in the Perinatal and Neonatal Setting

“…Today's liability crisis is commonplace for perinatal and neonatal clinicians. Approximately 32% of midwives have been a part of at least one lawsuit 1. A national sample of 4300 physicians across 29 specialties found that 79% of obstetrics and gynecology physicians had been named in a malpractice suit 2.…”