Abstract
This article gives an overview of current medical malpractice law in South Africa. The following aspects are covered: The overall scheme for preventing and redressing medical errors and adverse events, including regulation, criminal and civil liability, and social and private insurance, and the relationships among these various systems; the details of the applicable liability and compensation systems, including criteria defining qualification for compensation, causation and "loss of chance," liability for failure to obtain informed consent, as well as matters of proof and gathering of evidence. The authors note the difficulty they had in obtaining empirical data on medical errors and adverse events. Finally, certain attitudes and concerns about the liability and compensation systems are highlighted.
Recommended Citation
L. C. Coetzee & Pieter Carstens,
Medical Malpractice and Compensation in South Africa,
86
Chi.-Kent L. Rev.
1263
(2011).
Available at:
https://scholarship.kentlaw.iit.edu/cklawreview/vol86/iss3/10
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