ArticleMedicine, health care, and philosophy2020
Defensive practice is indefensible: how defensive medicine runs counter to the ethical and professional obligations of clinicians.
Article in Medicine, health care, and philosophy, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- How defensive medicine is defined in European medical literature: a systematic review.BMJ open · 2022Pooled it
- Danish GP trainees' experiences of navigating patient expectations for non-indicated procedures or tests: a qualitative interview study.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2026Article
- Behavioral Profiles in Romanian Resident Physicians: An Exploratory Study with Implications for Medical Education and Human Resource Development.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Defensive Medical Practice in Dentistry: A Dual-Perspective Cross-Sectional Analysis of Dentists and Patients in Romania.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Defensive medicine in dermatological practice - Dermatopathology as a mirror of structural challenges.Journal der Deutschen Dermatologischen Gesellschaft = Journal of the German Society of Dermatology : JDDG · 2026Review
- Risk Redux? Therapeutic Risk Taking and the Role of Supported Decision Making in Mental Health Settings.International journal of mental health nursing · 2026Article
- Paracetamol, pregnancy and law: What the Texas Tylenol case teaches SA doctors.South African family practice : official journal of the South African Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care · 2026Review
- Physicians' Attitudes Toward Unnecessary Medical Services: Ethical and Systemic Challenges in Fourth Level Prevention - Tehran 2024.Medical journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran · 2026Article
- Construction and validation of nomogram model for high-risk early warning of medical complaints based on occupational characteristics and workload of medical staff.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Comparison of accusations against physicians and the practice of defensive medicine between surgical and non-surgical specialties.PloS one · 2026Article
- Prevalence of defensive medicine behaviors, associated risk factors and its mitigation strategies among physicians in Gaza Strip, palestine: a mixed method study.BMC medical ethics · 2025Article
- The effects of loving-kindness meditation on doctors' communication anxiety, trust, calling and defensive medicine practice.BioPsychoSocial medicine · 2024Article
- The influence of fears of perceived legal consequences on general practitioners' practice in relation to defensive medicine - a cross-sectional survey in Germany.BMC primary care · 2024Article
- Policy Options for Reducing Defensive Medicine Behaviors: A Multi-Method Study.Medical journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran · 2024Article
- Exploring defensive medicine: examples, underlying and contextual factors, and potential strategies - a qualitative study.BMC medical ethics · 2023Article
- Digital Phenotyping: Data-Driven Psychiatry to Redefine Mental Health.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Article
- Collateral Victims of Defensive Medical Practice.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- To find fault is easy, to find no-fault is fair.Future healthcare journal · 2023Article
- Presenting a Comprehensive Definition of Unnecessary Healthcare Services and Their Drivers: A Systematic Review and Meta-synthesis.Medical journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran · 2023Review
- A qualitative interview study of Australian physicians on defensive practice and low value care: "it's easier to talk about our fear of lawyers than to talk about our fear of looking bad in front of each other".BMC medical ethics · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
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Abstract
Defensive medicine has become pervasive. Defensive medicine is often thought of as a systems issue, the inevitable result of an adversarial malpractice environment, with consequent focus on system-responses and tort reform. But defensive medicine also has ethical and professionalism implications that should be considered beyond the need for tort reform. This article examines defensive medicine from an ethics and professionalism perspective, showing how defensive medicine is deeply problematic. First, a definition of defensive medicine is offered that describes the essence of defensive practice: clinical actions with the goal of protecting the clinician against litigation or some adverse outcome. Ethical arguments against defensive medicine are considered: (1) defensive medicine is deceptive and undermines patient autonomy; (2) defensive medicine subjugates patient interests to physician interests and violate fiduciary obligations; (3) defensive medicine exposes patients to harm without benefit; (4) defensive medicine undermines trust in the profession; and (5) defensive medicine violates obligations of justice. Possible arguments in favor of defensive medicine are considered and refuted. Defensive practice is therefore unethical and unprofessional, and should be viewed as a challenge for medical ethics and professionalism.
Indexed as
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32303983What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.