APALM PRESENTS: A Case to Remember | Clinician Pitfalls and Powerful Takeaways
September 11, 2025
The first in APALM’s case study series, this event equips PA students, practicing PAs, educators, and healthcare leaders with essential skills in clinical practice, risk management, and healthcare law.
Join us for the first event in APALM’s groundbreaking case study series!
Designed to empower PA students, practicing PAs, healthcare leaders, and educators. This session delivers critical insights into clinical risk mitigation and legal medicine — the cornerstone of ethical, regulatory, and healthcare law training in PA education.
Accreditation Statement:
✅ This activity has been reviewed and is pending approval for 1.5 AAPA Category 1 CME credits by the AAPA Review Panel. Once approved, it is valid from September 11, 2025, to September 11, 2028. This program was planned in accordance with AAPA CME Standards for Lifelong Learning and Commercial Support.
If you are an existing member, kindly use the following link to proceed with your registration.
WE ARE APALM.
APALM is a constituent organization of the AAPA and the foremost authority on behalf of the PA profession within legal medicine, healthcare law, safety, quality, and clinical risk mitigation. We are your SMEs and educational partners on the standard of care, medicolegal proceedings, patient quality & safety, patient communication, healthcare ethics, and healthcare fraud. We collaborate with academic programs, healthcare systems, attorneys, clinical risk managers, PA students, and PA professionals to elevate care delivery.
MEET THE SPEAKERS.
Christopher Cannell DMSc, MPAS, PA-C, DFAAPA
- Emergency & Hospital Medicine | Orthopedics PA
- Emergency Medicine CAQ – South Shore Health System
- SME | Medical Legal and Healthcare Consultant | Educational
- Consultant
- President of The Academy of PAs in Legal Medicine
- BOD ADPA & MAPA
- Advisory Board – Southern California University of Health Sciences
Jared R. Pennington, PhD, PA-C
- Professor of Physician Assistant Studies
- Founder of preTRIALDX, a Medical-Legal Consulting Firm
- Health Policy Researcher
- Expertise in Digital Health and Telemedicine
Peter I. Bergé, JD, MPA, PA-C Emeritus
- Attorney at law/medicolegal educator
- Mexico City – New Jersey – New York
Marilyn Suri, DMSc, MPA, PA-C
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Chief Advanced Practice Provider/COO for a leading pulmonary and critical care group in South Florida
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Adjunct Professor specializing in critical care, leadership, and medical-legal topics
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South Regional Director, Florida Academy of Physician Assistants (FAPA)
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Legislative Committee member and dedicated advocate for the PA professionAPALM board of directors
KEY DISCUSSION POINTS
Dr. Christopher Cannell
- Discuss the importance of the use of clinical decision-making tools in our evaluation, medical decision-making, and disposition of patients
- Discuss the importance of informed consent and the use of and documentation of shared decision-making in the care of patients
- Discuss the importance of obtaining collateral history from various sources when evaluating a patient while discussing
- Understanding the difference between ordinary vs gross negligence and the use of comparative negligence
- How to perform a root cause system analysis and identify failure mechanisms
- Discuss and Analyze the breakdown in result workflow management
- Define evidence-based management of critical laboratory results
- Understand the importance of effective communication, standardized protocols and workflows in ambulatory care settings
Peter I. Bergé
Distress, Damages and Wrongful Death
A real-life pediatric death case leads us to a discussion of injury, damages, tort reform and wrongful death lawsuits.
1. Distinguish between injury and damages in the context of healthcare negligence litigation.
2. Differentiate between compensatory and punitive (exemplary) damages.
3. Discuss the subtle differences and overlaps between pecuniary and non pecuniary damages.
4. Define and characterize injuries to survivors that are typical of wrongful death (and some medical negligence) claims.
Jared R. Pennington
Define the components of effective test result management systems and distinguish between individual versus system-level failures in healthcare delivery.
Recognize which abnormal test results require immediate action versus routine follow-up based on clinical significance and cancer risk.
Discuss evidence-based protocols for communicating abnormal test results to patients, including timing, method, documentation, and accountability measures.
Understand the professional, legal, and ethical responsibilities associated with ordering diagnostic tests and the duty to ensure appropriate follow-up and patient notification.
Recognize common pitfalls in personal workflow management that lead to missed follow-up and develop fail-safe strategies for tracking pending results and actions.
Define appropriate supervisory oversight mechanisms for test result management in primary care practices employing multiple physician associates and advanced practice nurses.