Anderson also would not disclose how many Fischer victims have come forward to date. Requests for interviews with Drs. Gilbert, Kim, and Deiter were denied. The best defense for a corporate defendant is to hide their eyes, bury their ears, and refuse to acknowledge anything has happened. Health care analysts, though, say that while it's important for hospitals to investigate potential physician misconduct, actually doing so can put them in a difficult bind.
Doctors often turn around and sue hospitals over due process issues.
A responsible institution will carefully investigate and restructure a physician's activities so he doesn't have such opportunities. Even though it is more prudent to do an in-depth, comprehensive investigation of possible physician misconduct when allegations arise, health care institutions vary greatly in the ways they handle accusations against one of their physicians, says Nobel. It may also be true in a given institution that those in charge are reluctant to investigate a renowned specialist. The Downey Police Department's Lacy is still dumbfounded by Kaiser's refusal to act, given the seriousness of the warnings. If they would have made some attempt to investigate, it would've been a different story.