Psychiatric Malpractice Issues (IN: Legal Encroachment on Psychiatric Practice, edited by S Rachlin)

Psychiatrists are increasingly vulnerable to lawsuits for reasons unique to psychiatry, & for the peculiar irrationality of many legal principles & procedures. This article discusses the nature of the adversarial system & the peculiarities of psychiatric vulnerability; examines tardive dyskinesia (disorder consequent to long-term use of certain medication); & notes that suicides or injury during a suicide attempt account for 14-25% of all litigation against psychiatrists. (15 refs.)