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The common law requires a medical practitioner to possess and exercise the knowledge, skill and judgment expected of a normal, prudent practitioner of his or her special group. This is the standard of care expected of the medical practitioner.
A medical practitioner can breach the standard of care in many ways. For example, the practitioner could fail to meet the standard in:
- obtaining the patient’s relevant medical history
- conducting clinical examinations
- ordering tests and other investigations
- interpreting the results of tests and other investigations
- making conclusions on the basis of relevant medical history, findings on clinical examinations, and results of tests and other investigations
- diagnosing the patient’s medical condition
- advising the patient of the options for treatment (including waiting to see if the condition requires treatment, medication, surgery or other procedure)
- treating the patient’s medical condition (by medication, surgery or other procedure)
- referring the patient to another practitioner for diagnosis and treatment
- monitoring the patient’s condition before or after treatment
- instructing the patient with regard to the signs and symptoms that should be monitored before or after treatment
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