For healthcare practitioners, the Covid-19 pandemic has created a totally different practice scenario with many doctors struggling to fulfil their primary professional obligations in a highly stressful, uncertain and constantly




Johannesburg – A combination of heightened mobility across various provinces, an increase in super-spreader events, a new virus variant and a decrease in compliance with social-distancing protocols have contributed to the


What is medical professional indemnity? Medical professional indemnity, also known as medical malpractice insurance, provides legal and financial support to healthcare professionals where they have been negligent in their conduct


What is informed consent? Informed consent is a two-way dialogue between patient and their healthcare practitioner whereby the practitioner provides adequate information necessary to enable the patient to make an


by Alex Brownlee – Actuary and Executive Head of EthiQal South Africa recorded its first coronavirus case in early March 2020. Roughly seven months and over 700 000 positive coronavirus cases


EthiQal, a division of Constantia Insurance Company Limited, has launched yet another year of its Doctor’s Day initiative and calls on all South Africans to join them in celebrating our


As we near the end of 2020, I reflect on a remarkable year. What has occurred this year, has turned out to be vastly different from the expectations I had


Key Learnings from Risk Management Practice Reviews At EthiQal, we strive to provide affordable professional indemnity that is aligned with the risk posed by individual practices. We also endeavour to


Managing frontline medico-legal risks during COVID-19: from webinars to app sponsorships A year ago, COVID-19 was nothing more than some news broadcast from somewhere far away. It now continues to


It is important to remember that every prescription, note, report or document your practice prepares comes with clinical, ethical, and legal responsibilities. Unfortunately, there may be occasions where a patient is


EthiQal is saddened to learn of the death of anaesthetist Dr Abdulhay Munshi. There are no words to express the sorrow, horror and disbelief relating to the act of violence


For a second year, professional medical indemnity provider, EthiQal, has made a financial contribution to Operation Healing Hands (OHH), a non-profit organisation that performs life-saving surgeries in the public sector.


South Africa’s extended Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown is merely slowing down the infection rate to allow for the urgent continued expansion of its currently inadequate treatment and life-saving capacity. It’s a


Very few would have predicted the war the world is fighting today – the battle against sub-microscopic particles that are paralyzing healthcare systems even in the richest of places like


Dear Valued Client, Little did any of us anticipate less than three months ago when entering this new decade that the world would be facing the unprecedented challenges posed by


Dear Valued Client, We are pleased to introduce you to Constantia’s new Chief Executive Officer, Peter Todd, who recently took up the reins from Volker von Widdern. Peter has held


With a burgeoning load of unwarranted patient litigation threatening to drain public and private sector resources and disrupt overall healthcare delivery, urgent measures are required to address this unintended crisis.


The relationship between the patient and the healthcare practitioner: the legalities Mastering the theory of diseases and treatment, and the technical skills to perform intricate diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, is


EthiQal launched the 2019 National Doctors’ Day campaign in November, giving South Africans the opportunity to honour their doctors with stories of how they’ve made a difference in their lives.


Johannesburg – A surprising number of GPs and specialists are unaware of the myriad ways in which they could fall victim to litigation, often believing this to be confined to


What is a subpoena? A subpoena compels a witness to provide a court with information or documents on a specific date, time and location under a penalty for failure. Are


Johannesburg – Talk to any doctor who’s faced litigation from a patient or their family, following an adverse event, and they’ll tell you how emotionally exhausting the process is. Risk


Lives and industries are becoming increasingly digital, and healthcare is no exception. More healthcare professionals are using social media in their personal, as well as professional capacity.


How a medical malpractice public/private partnership can reduce State’s medico-legal exposure and improve health care outcomes. With the draft NHI bill silent on an estimated R98 billion in state medico-legal


The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) is a statutory body that protects the public, determines standards of professional education and training, and sets and maintains standards of ethical


Volker von Widdern, Chief Executive Officer of EthiQal speaks to eNCA about the NHI and South Africa’s medico-legal crisis.


A summons is a document issued by a court, which begins the litigation process. There are a variety of different summonses, the most common is a combined summons and it is used for medical malpractice claims.


South Africans are becoming increasingly aware of their rights when it comes to medical malpractice, explaining some of the increases in the number and size of claims against doctors.


Medical professional indemnity cover is designed to protect you where allegations of improper professional conduct are made against you in your capacity as a doctor.


A local insurer of healthcare professionals, EthiQal, has donated R240 000 to Operation Healing Hands, OHH, a non-profit-organisation set up to relieve the overwhelming burden of surgery in the public sector.


It is essential that medical practioners understand the differences between the types of professional indemnity cover available and that they purchase cover that is best suited to their needs.


It is essential that medical practioners understand the differences between the types of professional indemnity cover available and that they purchase cover that is best suited to their needs.


Johannesburg – Managing medical risk in South Africa’s runaway healthcare litigation environment is a multi-facetted and difficult endeavour, but one that must be tackled to avoid dire healthcare delivery consequences.


Medical academics, healthcare practitioners, lawyers,as well as representatives from government and Constantia Insurance gathered this month to apply their minds to averting the prospective collapse of maternal and child healthcare services.


EthiQal, a division of Constantia Insurance Company Limited, has won the Insurance and Re-insurance category award of the Institute of Risk Management, South Africa, (IRMSA), for its efforts to resolve the litigation crisis in healthcare in this country.