The recent medical malpractice of Korean actress Han Ye-seul has brought the topic of medical mishaps regarding celebrities and the handling of them to the forefront of public discussion.

(Source: Han Ye Seul’s Instagram)

Experts are now regarding physician’s handling of Han’s case as starkly different from that of the late Korean signer Shin Hae-chul’s case a couple of years ago. Han recently uploaded a picture of a botched lipoma surgery onto Instagram, which showed severe scarring on her skin, drawing public attention to the case.

The physician responsible for the operation, Professor Lee Ji-hyun of Gangnam CHA Medical Center, immediately addressed the public by appearing on a YouTube show called Medical Channel Beyond D. He explained what went wrong step-by-step, and admitted that he made a mistake and apologized to both Han and her fans for the botched surgery.

Related : Lipomas come under spotlight after actress’ botched surgery

In contrast, Kang Se-hoon, the surgeon responsible for Shin’s death continuously denied responsibility for his botched operation for almost two years. Kang had performed gastric and intestinal adhesion detachment surgery and stomach reduction surgery on Shin, but the musician died a couple of days later.

Kang was first convicted at a lower court on charges of professional negligence but pleaded not guilty in an appeals trial, dragging out the case further and drawing more media attention. A local court almost three years later ordered Kang to pay 1.6 billion won ($1.4 million) to the deceased singer’s family.

Related : Court orders surgeon of dead musician to pay ₩1.6 billion

Korea Biomedical Review met Kim Hoh, CEO of consulting firm The Lab H and co-translator of “SorryWorks" and author of "Why Can’t I Say No,” as an expert in communications and public apologies, to hear his views on these cases.

Kim Hoh

Q: How have Korean physicians handled medical malpractice?

Answer: Whenever medical malpractices happen, the traditional Korean approach focuses on the legal aspect. They act so they can protect themselves at the court of law, which itself is understandable. However, medical malpractice management, like other corporate crisis management, is about victim’s management. That should be the key focus.

Q: How did Kang Se-hoon handle medical malpractice of musician Shin Hae-chul?

A: Shin’s case is widely known - and it’s obvious - that the doctor involved with medical malpractice didn’t focus on the patient. Kang concentrated on protecting himself. With this method, he could not receive any public support at all, and, at the same time, he caused public anger.

Q: How should physicians handle medical malpractice, then?

A: Medical malpractice management should stop being traditional legal practice management. Physicians should acknowledge the mishap as fast as they can.

The second part is the investigation. The hospital or medical doctor should engage other medical doctors or lawyers appointed by the patient – this is called the disclosure program in the United States. Hospitals with disclosure programs approach the family saying, “I’m sorry that this happened,” but, they do not accept responsibility then.

However, they open up a transparent investigation. Transparent in this case means they ask the victim’s family to suggest or recommend any lawyers or medical doctors that they want to engage in the inquiry. Then they jointly investigate the case within 72 hours, which leads to two results. One, the doctors made a mistake. The other is that they did their best regarding medical treatment.

If it’s the latter case, the hospital or physician can answer any questions patient’s family has. Because the family’s lawyer is also involved, the level of conflict is significantly reduced.

If it is the former case where the doctors made a medical mistake, then they apologize and also state, “I made a mistake, and I want to work directly with you to compensate you.” If this happens, the patient and family get to talk directly with the physician or hospital, significantly saving money and [avoiding] a lengthy legal process.

Q: Do you see the disclosure program being implemented in Korea?

A: Korea is also considering the so-called “sorry law,” or the apology law. This law refers to the prohibition of using a physician’s apology at the court. This is already established in around 35 states of America.

With this law, there’s no legal fear of saying, “I’m sorry, I made a mistake.” Korea doesn’t have that.

Q: What are some consequences of not having the “Sorry Law?”

A: This blocks transparent communication between the patient and the doctor. That happened with the late Shin Hye-chul’s case because the doctor acted to protect himself.

In medical malpractice, it is better to acknowledge one’s mistake and try to compensate as much as they can. That saves money for them financially. It also saves face because when they make a mistake people may develop tunnel vision.

To do that, however, we have to create a system where medical doctors and patients family can communicate openly and transparently by accepting the apology law.

Q: How do you see Han’s case unfolding?

A: It’s hard to tell, but the key difference between the two cases is that the medical malpractice involving Shin happened internally (through gastric surgery). Han’s medical malpractice, on the hand, is external and very visible. In this case, it might be hard to ignore or deny medical malpractice. In Han Ye-seul’s case, even though the doctor acknowledged his mistake, Han seems like she is not entirely over it yet. I haven’t heard about the compensation yet so again, it’s hard to say.

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