Review of Sentinel Events and Claims from the Midwife Plan Against Birth Centers and Liability Risk Reduction Strategies

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DATE: Friday, October 13th
TIME: 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
FACULTY: Linda Cole, DNP, CNM, CNE, FACNM & Ann Geisler, CPCU, AU, AAI

A Sentinel Event is an unexpected adverse occurrence involving death, serious physical or psychological injury, or risk of injury or death, including any process variation for which a recurrence would carry a significant chance of a serious adverse outcome. There are also near-miss events including wrong medications given, falls without injury, and missed abnormal labs. Medical malpractice claims against birth centers are not rare and are lawsuits filed by plaintiff attorneys against midwives and birth centers. In this session, we will explore some of the more common malpractice claims brought about by birth center clients and recent trends in claims. We will explain how to identify and implement liability risk reduction strategies to minimize exposure to patient harm and subsequent litigation in the birth center setting. Tools and resources will be provided to create or update quality improvement processes within a just culture that can be integrated into any birth center setting and garner stakeholder buy-in.

Faculty

Linda Cole, DNP, CNM, CNE, FACNM
Linda practiced as a full-scope nurse-midwife at the Lisa Ross Birth and Women’s Center, a freestanding birth center and large contributor to the Strong Start data in Knoxville, Tennessee for 23 years. She was the Director of the center for ten years and developed innovative programs to serve a largely under-served population. She served as President of the American Association of Birth Centers (2009-2013) and served on the AABC Foundation Board. She is an Assistant Professor at Frontier Nursing University and co-editor of Freestanding Birth Centers: Innovation, Evidence, Optimal Outcomes- the first textbook in the United States published on the freestanding birth center model. Her current work includes teaching graduate nursing and midwifery students about the role of advanced practice nurses and midwives within the National Quality Strategy and approaches to implementing quality improvement.

Ann Geisler, CPCU, AU, AAI
Ann’s insurance career has spanned over 40 years, specializing in medical malpractice/professional liability insurance for midwives and birth centers. Midwives continue to be her mentors and educators, which allows her to be their best advocate to the insurance industry. In return, she can better facilitate tailored advice to her clients and continue supporting and advocating for the birth center model of care.