Welcome back, malpractice database

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Updated: November 5, 2011 1:07PM

The Illinois Patient Right to Know Act is testament that some ideas are so responsible, even the monied forces of entrenched self-interest can’t defeat them.

State Rep. Mary Flowers (D-Chicago) has worked for 10 years to guarantee that Illinois patients can find out if their doctor is good or bad, based on work history.

She accomplished her goal, a state website with such information, only to see it removed after two years because of an Illinois Supreme Court ruling.

Gov. Pat Quinn signed a revised bill into law this month and pronounced it the best customer rights bill the Legislature passed this year.

He’s right about that.

The centerpiece of the law is a computer database, first launched in 2008, that provides a physician’s disciplinary history, practice specialties, insurance information, hospital affiliations and, perhaps most importantly, a list of malpractice judgments or settlements involving the doctor during the previous five years. The state’s roughly 48,000 physicians and chiropractors will all be listed when the site returns in a couple of months.

Consumers loved the database for obvious reasons during its two-year existence — it drew about 150,000 hits per week. When you put your family’s life in a doctor’s hands, you have a right to know as much about him or her as you can.

Does the doctor have a record of proven competence and professional achievement? After all, the Institute of Medicine acknowledges that about 90,000 Americans die every year in hospitals because of medical mistakes, though very few families ever sue anyone.

The database was added to the law two years ago as part of medical malpractice reform approved by the General Assembly. But the Supreme Court found the cap on damages contained in that law to be unconstitutional, and the database went dark.

For nearly two years, key information on medical malpractice in Illinois has been shielded from public scrutiny. Only a citizen patient enough and knowledgeable enough to plow through piles of court records would find such information on his doctor.

Unfortunately, doctors don’t like the database. At least the Illinois Medical Society doesn’t, having fought giving patients access to this information for years. Their theory is that patients only want such information as ammunition to sue doctors.

Uh, no. How disingenuous of them. If you read this page regularly, you know we’re big on transparency and open access to information. To make an informed decision, a patient needs to be able to easily find key information about his doctor.

The Physicians Profile will be restocked with full data within two months and posted again at www.idfpr.com/

Check it out. Like fruits and veggies, it’s great for your health.