Dutton - Medical Malpractice in SA

The significant increase in medical malpractice litigation, both in South
Africa and internationally, looks set to continue. As a result, medical
malpractice law is an increasingly specialised area for both medical and
legal practitioners. This timely publication, unique in its scope, is a musthave
for both medical and legal practitioners.
The purpose of this book is to set out the fundamental principles governing
the law of medical malpractice in clear and understandable terms, so that
those principles can be applied in daily practice.
The intersection of the fields of medicine and the law produces formidable
challenges. For the lawyer, the applicable legal principles and issues are
as intellectually and professionally demanding as encountered in any field
of the law. For the medical practitioner, there is at present an obstructive
uncertainty and anxiety about the legal rules which apply, and the health
professions accordingly feel under siege.
Added to this is the formative role that government and civil society play
in considering and assimilating into our legal system profound policy
considerations affecting our most intimate interests. This book addresses
these issue clearly and comprehensively.
Ian Dutton
has practised both as an attorney and as an advocate for over twenty years,
and has had a career-long professional interest and expertise in medical law.
He is the chairperson of the KZN branch of the South African Medico Legal
Society and is a member of the World Association of Medical Lawyers, the
Royal Society of Medicine and the American College of Legal Medicine; he
is currently completing an LLM in Medical Law and Ethics at the University
of Edinburgh.
ISBN 978-1-920025-95-3