Medical Accidents and the Responsibility of the Medical Community —A case in Japan and lessons learnt-

摘要

As detailed in the past issue of JMA Journal(Vol. 51, No. 4), the death of a woman in childbirthat Fukushima Prefectural Oono Hospital devel-oped into a criminal case, in which the obstetrician/gynecologist who indicted caesarean section andremoval of a placenta previa was arrested andprosecuted in Fukushima District Court (Crimi-nal) for charges including professional negligenceresulting in death, to the astonishment of not onlyobstetricians/gynecologists but also the wholemedical society in Japan.