Medical malpractice as a defensive medical malpractice component

Medical malpractice, with its hundreds of years of history, has become one of the dominant subjects of modern health law. Although at first glance it brings the physician who has committed an error while taking care of his or her patient to mind, to reduce medical practice to physician-patient relationships would be an oversimplification. Medical malpractice is a complex subject that involves medical science, insurance industry, expert opinion, as well as civil and criminal law. By referring to these issues separately and in detail, the study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the concept as a whole. Since it is highly technical and specific, medical malpractice is a socio-culturally difficult subject to comprehend. In fact, even the physicians and lawyers frequently approach the topic from different perspectives, having difficulty in deciding what medical malpractice is and how and when it occurred. High court judgments, forensic medicine and university faculty expert opinions, and academic publications are important resources that can lead to a common understanding. The study provides examples of these resources displaying different perspectives. It also analyses data from Turkey and the World, exploring the breadth of the concept and its financial dimensions. As the study touches upon physician behaviors to help modify the risk of medical malpractice, it also remarks on potential mid- to long-term societal and professional challenges. The aim of this study, which is aimed to academically contribute to the concept of medical malpractice, which physicians are trying to protect by defensive medicine, is trying to reach the result that it is not enough to look at the concepts of law and medicine from the viewpoint of medicine. Key words: Medical malpractice, medical intervention, physician responsibilities, informed consent, complication, defensive medicine.