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May 8, 2008 NEWSLETTER
Doug Wojcieszak, Founder & Spokesperson
Contact phone/e-mail address: 618-559-8168; doug@sorryworks.net
THIS WEEK'S EDITION:
Health Courts?
- Risk Management Week Gifts: Sorry Works! Book
- Take Your Airline to Court! Poor Customer Service 101
HEALTH COURTS?
Sorry Works! is sometimes seen as an "alternative" reform measure to the med-mal crisis. We like to think we're not alternative - we are the solution to the med-mal crisis. Another "alternative" measure out there is the health courts idea. In short, the health courts proposal says that special courts comprised of trained judges and experts in medicine and the law evaluate med-mal claims - as opposed to regular, every day jurors and judges. The health courts idea is being pushed at the federal and state level, with backers of the idea trying to get pilot programs passed.
From time to time Sorry Works! is asked to comment on health courts, and more specifically Sorry Works! is occasionally lumped in with health courts as part of an overall reform measure at the local, state, or federal level.
Let's be clear....there are two primary problems with health courts: 1) the focus and 2) the politics.
Problem #1: The Focus: Health courts - like most tort reform efforts - casts the med-mal crisis as a legal problem to be fixed by politicians, when Sorry Works!, experience from countless med-mal trial lawyers (defense and plaintiffs), and the peer-reviewed research of Hickson and others tell us clearly the problem is mostly a customer service crisis to be fixed by healthcare providers. Anger - not greed - pushes patients and families to file med-mal lawsuits. Patients and families become angry with their providers when they are abandoned post-adverse event with deny and defend risk management strategies. Most people just want someone to level with them and help fix their problems. Don't believe us - ask any defense or plaintiff's attorney.
The real, fixable problems are with communication strategies and how providers, hospital, and insurance personnel relate with patients and families when things go wrong. Most med-mal cases can be defused with good customer service, and those cases that move forward to litigation can be strengthened a thousand fold with the evidence created by good customer service. Communication is the name of the game, not who sits on the bench or the composition of the jury pool. Health courts lead providers away from the solutions that are easily accessible and readily attainable.
PROBLEM #2: The Politics: Philip K. Howard, the leading proponent of health courts in the United States, was asked by a physician at the PHRMA 2006 conference in Long Beach, CA how many years of political fights and judicial reviews are anticipated with the effort to enact health courts. Howard's response: "About 30 to 40 years." Thirty to 40 years of political fights at the local, state, and federal level followed by judicial reviews? And you thought tort reform was an expensive, drawn out battle? Sounds like health courts would be just as bad, if not worse. And there are no guarantees...Philip and his friends could take your donations, go to war with the trial bar, and come home with nothing. Think about it: A first-year medical student today could go through school, residency, practice, and retire - and not have any reforms if they wait around for health courts. And as we stated above, the reforms are not really needed in the courts so much as they are absolutely necessary in the customer service techniques employed by providers. Customer service is where the action is, not the courts, the judges, the juries, or the lawyers. Best part is you can choose to improve your customer service today without asking Philip or his friends to beg politicians for votes and no judge can ever rule your Sorry Works! program unconstitutional. That's empowering!
Health courts? No thank you.
RISK MANAGEMENT WEEK GIFTS: SORRY WORKS! BOOK
Risk Management Week - June 16-20 - is fast approaching and what gifts and promotional items will you be giving away? Your staff probably has enough coffee mugs, t-shirts, and mouse pads. Try giving the book that will make a lasting impact on the career of your risk managers. Disclosure and apology is the new front in risk management...many risk managers want to implement disclosure and apology programs, but they don't know how to do it. The Sorry Works! Book is the how-to manual on disclosure and apology. Everything from explaining the important difference between empathy and apology to establishing a disclosure program to handling the doubters in your organization...it's all covered in the Sorry Works! Book. Here's the best part: The Sorry Works! Book only costs $21.95 per copy. Most medical, risk, and legal texts cost a small (or large) fortune - but not the Sorry Works! Book. You can put the book on your credit card or be invoiced, whatever is most convenient for you. And bulk discounts are available for large purchases.
Already the Michigan, Kentucky, and Northern New England ASHRM chapters have purchased copies of the book for all of their members. Purchase your copy today by visiting this link: http://www.sorryworks.net/booksoon.phtml . To inquire about bulk discounts, please contact Sorry Works! Founder Doug Wojcieszak at 618-559-8168 or e-mail doug@sorryworks.net.
To see quotes from your healthcare, risk, and insurance colleagues in praise of the Sorry Works! Book read below:
- "We felt this book would make an excellent resource for our members and assist them in promoting and teaching disclosure and apology of medical errors in their institution." Margaret Curtin, President, Michigan ASHRM
- "For the first time, the authors have clarified the difference between empathy and apology, which will help everyone to move forward with this important concept that can improve patient safety and reduce liability risk," Pat Sedlak, Director, Aon Risk Services
- "The Sorry Works! book is wonderful, and just what I needed for my organization! It is concise, informative, and very sensible. It should be required reading for any group considering development of a Disclosure policy and for those training to become champions for their organization." Rhonda L. McGlothlin, Director, Risk Management & Insurance Operations, Centra Health, Inc.
- "Every hospital risk manager should read this simple and profound book. It makes the case that expressing empathy and sympathy to patients and accepting responsibility, when appropriate, is kind, humane, and liberating." Brian J. Teusink, Senior Vice President, PHT Services.
- "This is the 'how-to' manual for providers who want to reconnect with patients and families after adverse medical events." Ilene Corina, President, PULSE of NY
TAKE YOUR AIRLINE TO COURT! POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE 101
From time to time we draw on other industries (outside healthcare) to teach lessons about customer service and litigation. Two days ago (May 6th), MSNBC ran a great column on the growing number of passengers taking their airlines to court over horrible customer service and problems left unfixed by the airlines. Notice the key themes: Angry passengers who are fed up being treated like second class citizens are finding sympathetic ears in courtrooms because judges and juries fly airplanes too! Just like judges and juries are patients too. The lesson is airlines - like doctors - could avoid litigation by listening to their customers and fixing problems in a pro-active fashion.
See you in court
5 times when you should just sue'em
By Christopher Elliott
Travel columnist
Tribune Media Services
May. 6, 2008
Sometimes the last resort should be your first choice. That's what Linda Sesa learned when she found herself stranded in St. Lucia recently.
Sesa, a nurse practitioner from Yardley, Pa., had missed her flight to Charlotte because a US Airways employee mistakenly asked her to stand in the wrong check-in line. The airline refused to pick up the $1,500 tab for a return flight on another carrier, instead offering two $400 vouchers for her inconvenience. "I felt helpless and totally baffled over the entire situation," she says.
So Sesa did what increasing numbers of travelers are doing today. She took an airline to court. And she won.
No one knows how many travel-related cases are in the courts now. There aren't any reliable surveys that aggregate actions in local, state and federal court or break out the number of cases that deal with airlines, car rental companies or hotels. But there's significant anecdotal evidence that a group of disgruntled customers are simply bypassing the normal grievance process and suing.
Before I continue, a disclaimer: I'm not a lawyer, and this column isn't meant to dispense any legal advice. But I am an expert on complaints - I write the Travel Troubleshooter column that appears on this site - and I've advised many travelers as their cases have worked their way through the courts.
Lately, I've noticed people's patience with the traditional complaint process - writing a letter, waiting for a reply, sending a probable appeal - is wearing thin. It's as if they know they'll be turned down and think they have a better chance of getting compensated by getting the law involved immediately.
Often, they do. Although the number of wins is just as difficult to find as the number of travel-related cases, my notebook tells me that passengers and hotel guests are doing pretty well in court, thanks very much. Most of the action is happening in a small-claims court, where the costs (and as far as the companies are concerned, the stakes) are relatively low. You don't need an attorney, and you often win by default because the other side doesn't show up.
Here are five times when you should consider skipping the complaints process and going straight to court:
When they're playing games
Sesa’s problem is a good example of a travel company monkeying around with a customer. It repeatedly acknowledged its error and sent her a form letter that claimed "customer satisfaction is our main focus," but then repeatedly disappointed her by refusing to pay for a new ticket back home. Sesa didn't like the games, so she took US Airways to small claims court. Apparently, the airline thought that was all part of the game. "No one from US Airways showed up," she remembers. "The judge asked me what happened, I told her, she was appalled, and I won by default." Game over.
When they've broken a contract
In 1987, Mostyn Lloyd and his wife paid $250 each for a Hilton Senior Honors lifetime membership. The card entitled them to room and meal discounts, as well as other perks. Hilton recently informed the couple that it was canceling the senior program. "I consider that a breach of contract," he says. Hilton argues that its terms allow it to cancel the program anytime. (I contacted the hotel chain, and a spokeswoman told me she's looking into the matter.) Lloyd says that argument makes no sense, and that the clause Hilton has invoked only applies to members of the program, not to the program itself. Maybe that's something for a judge to decide.
When they're being dishonest
I. Milton Karabell, a travel agent from Philadelphia, told me the following story: A few years ago, one of his clients booked a package that ended up not being quite what he expected. "After his return, we concluded that the ad for the package was false and misleading, and that he had costs he shouldn't have incurred," he remembers. Karabell told his client to go to small claims court, where, he remembers, the tour operator's lawyers "arrived with checkbooks in hand." Sometimes, it's pointless to argue with a company about a claim it may or may not have made. Sometimes, the best place to settle an argument like this is in a court of law.
When they're ignoring you
One of the easiest ways to get a travel company's attention is to sue it, of course. Which wouldn't be necessary if it was paying attention to you in the first place. So when one of my readers, who asked to remain nameless because he works for the government, recently wrote to me about an airline service problem, the answer seemed clear: sue. He'd been on a flight on which his business-class seat didn't work, and wanted a partial refund. His airline paid no attention to his arguments - until it received a summons to appear in a California Superior Court. Shortly thereafter, he received a letter from the air carrier with a more generous settlement offer, which he accepted.
When they aren't listening to reason
Mohit Singla says he's headed to court because American Airlines is being unreasonable. He tried to board a flight from Chicago to Dallas recently, and although he had a valid boarding pass, the airline stopped him from getting on the flight. "My seat was given to people on a waiting list," he says. He paid $800 to fly to Dallas on Southwest, and wants American to cover the cost of the new ticket. It won't. "I feel insulted," he told me. There's more on Singla's story and a fascinating discussion of the relevant airline rules on my blog. When you feel as if a travel company has stopped listening to reason, it's time to start filling out your court papers.
Let me put it to you like this: if your travel company is lying, breaking its own rules, being obstinate or just ignoring you, you ought to consider taking it to court.
You never know what could happen. Jane Waun didn't when she took Spirit Airlines to East Lansing (Mich.) 54B District Court recently. The airline had canceled her flight at Detroit Metro Airport and failed to rebook her and her family. Waun had to buy new tickets on another airline and spend the night in a hotel, which cost her $1,350.
Spirit, like other airlines, has a contract that lets it do more or less whatever it wants. A lost cause? I asked Ellen Creager, who wrote a terrific account of the trial for the Detroit Free Press, about what happened in court, and that's not the way it ended. In a remarkable David-and-Goliath twist, Waun won. (If my memory serves correctly, the verdict was greeted with applause in the courtroom.)
I'm not surprised. At a time when America's judges are contending the same substandard service that we do when we're on the road, the courts have probably never been friendlier to the interests of travelers. Case closed.
To see the book's Foreword, Table of Contents, and Author Biographies, click on this link: http://www. sorryworks.net/pdf/SorryWorksForeword.pdf. To see additional information on the book, visit this link: http://www.sorryworks.net/booksoon.phtml
To purchase the perfect Doctor's Day Gift call today at 618-559-8168 or e-mail doug@sorryworks.net to get your copy of the Sorry Works! Book. Thank you!
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