• Case Study on Medical Negligence at National Taiwan University Hospital: A Crisis Management Perspective

Abstract

An intensive care unit of National Taiwan University Hospital committed medical negligence in which the wrong tube was used for dialysis treatment. Differing from other types of service negligence, cases of medical negligence cannot be resolved solely through service recovery strategies. As a consequence, this case used crisis management and communication as a basis to first analyze the reasons why medical negligence occurred at this hospital and then adopted the perspective of the crisis management process to explain the difference between general service errors and medical negligence. Additionally, the three stages of crisis management (pre-crisis prevention and preparation, crisis management and communication, and post-crisis organizational learning) are presented and used as teaching axes and related theories and concepts are provided to help students understand the importance of crisis management, recognize that crisis can be prevented, and identify avenues for prevention. At the same time, this case conveys to students the message that the first priority of medical crisis communication is to protect stakeholders from harm, rather than striving to protect organizational reputation.

Keywords: Medical negligence, Crisis management and communication, Crisis prevention, Situational crisis communication theory, Crisis response strategies