Medical Law is the body of laws concerning the rights, and responsibilities of medical professionals and their patients. These medical laws have been passed to protect patients to protect patients, and the medical care providers. The three main branches of medical law are: confidentiality, criminal law, and negligence. The laws are not only for the doctors being wrongfully accused for negligence, but they are also to help bring justice to the doctors and medical professionals who maltreated patients under their care.
The Branch of confidentiality was made to keep all patient information in the confidential. The confidentiality was reinforced by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). There have been many HIPPA violations
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This branch is for those medical professionals who are guilty of criminally taking advantage of their patients. This is call medical negligence. For example, (a paralyzed woman settles medical negligence case with the University of Cincinnati for $2.3 million dollars). (Bret Crow, 2013). In this case this was a situation that could have been avoided if proper procedures had taken place. (On June 28, 2006, Cynthia Adae went to the hospital with symptoms of right shoulder pain, limited range of motion of her right upper extremity, a cough, and a fever). (Bret Crow, 2013). The doctor had made an assumption that she could have had an infection or thyroid abnormities, he even considered performed a spinal tab but did not do it. After a lot of blood work was done the doctors discharged Adae without knowing her results. That was a huge mistake they made. Adae complained that the blood test showed an infection, and that the doctor was aware but failed to follow up with the patient and take further actions to treat her. Later Adae had “developed progressive paraplegia, weakness of her upper and lower extremities, slurred speech, and acute renal failure. (Bret Crow,