Running a clinic, outpatient centre or practice requires many decisions that also have a legal dimension. Questions about patients, staff, medical records, contracts or new services arise all the time and often need a quick answer.

Ongoing legal services for a medical facility give access to a lawyer who knows how the facility works and can respond when a specific problem arises.

Our firm provides ongoing legal support to entities operating in the medical sector – from small practices and clinics to larger facilities and other healthcare providers.

We tailor the scope of cooperation to the size of the facility, the type of services provided and the real needs of its owners and staff.

How do we help as part of ongoing legal services?

Ongoing services may include, among other things:

• legal consultations on the day-to-day running of the facility,
• drafting and reviewing contracts,
• matters related to medical records,
• consents and forms used in contact with patients,
• issues concerning patient rights,
• cooperation with doctors and other staff,
• employment law matters,
• personal data protection,
• preparing and updating internal procedures,
• help with patient complaints and claims,
• dealing with authorities and institutions,
• support during inspections,
• matters related to the NFZ,
• public procurement,
• representation in disputes and court proceedings.

Not every facility needs the same scope of help. That is why, before starting cooperation, we establish what kind of matters arise most often and in which areas ongoing access to a lawyer will be most useful.

Ongoing legal consultations

In medical practice, many problems are hard to foresee in advance.

A patient demands that records be released to a third party. The family wants information about the patient’s health. A doctor reports a problem with consent to a procedure. The facility receives a complaint or a demand for payment. A question arises about a new service or the way of cooperating with a specialist.

In such situations, being able to consult the problem quickly allows a decision to be made before the matter becomes complicated.

Ongoing legal services mean that the lawyer knows the facility, the solutions it uses and previous arrangements, so there is no need to start by describing the whole business from the beginning for each matter.

Medical records and patient rights

One of the areas that comes up most often in the facility’s day-to-day operations is medical records.

We help with matters concerning, among others:

• keeping records,
• making them available,
• authorisations given by patients,
• access of close relatives to information,
• storing and securing documents,
• responding to patients’ requests.

We also advise in situations concerning consent to healthcare services, the duty to inform, respect for the patient’s privacy and dignity and other rights of people using the facility’s services.

In practice, what matters is not only having the right forms, but also whether staff know when and how to use them.

Contracts with doctors and staff

Medical facilities often work with staff in various forms – under employment contracts, service contracts or other civil-law agreements.

We help draft and analyse contracts with:

• doctors,
• nurses,
• physiotherapists,
• laboratory diagnosticians,
• administrative staff,
• entities providing services to the facility.

We pay particular attention to the scope of duties, the rules of liability, settlements, confidentiality, the use of the facility’s infrastructure and the rules for ending cooperation.

A contract should reflect how the cooperation actually works, rather than being limited to a standard template used for every specialist.

Employment law in a medical facility

Ongoing services may also cover matters related to employing staff.

We help, among other things, with preparing employee documentation, changing terms of employment, terminating contracts, creating regulations and day-to-day problems related to the organisation of work.

This support can be particularly useful for facility managers or HR departments who have to combine employment law requirements with the specifics of medical practice every day.

Personal data protection

Medical facilities process large amounts of information about patients’ health.

As a result, issues related to GDPR and personal data protection arise not only when creating documentation, but also in day-to-day operations.

We help, among other things, in matters concerning:

• staff access to data,
• transferring information to other entities,
• cooperation with IT system providers,
• online forms and online registration,
• data security breaches,
• information obligations towards patients.

If necessary, we also analyse new technological solutions the facility intends to implement.

Patient complaints and claims

Even a well-functioning facility may receive a complaint, a demand for payment or notice of an intention to pursue claims.

In such situations, the first reaction is particularly important.

We help analyse the course of treatment and the documentation gathered, prepare a response and establish the further course of action.

If necessary, we also contact the insurer and help secure materials that may be relevant in later proceedings.

The aim is not only to respond to the specific claim, but also to draw conclusions that will help reduce similar risks in the future.

Inspections and proceedings before authorities

Medical facilities operate within a framework of many regulations and inspection bodies.

Ongoing legal services may include preparing the facility for inspections, analysing letters received, preparing responses and representation in proceedings.

We help, among other things, in contacts and proceedings concerning the facility’s activities before the relevant authorities and institutions, including matters related to patient rights or the financing of services.

If a request or inspection arises, the facility can immediately consult the matter with a lawyer instead of seeking help only after taking the first steps.

Support for new services and the facility’s growth

Ongoing legal services are also useful when the facility grows.

Opening a new location, hiring more specialists, introducing a new type of service or starting cooperation with another entity often involve additional obligations.

Before implementing changes, we analyse their legal consequences and help prepare the necessary documentation.

As a result, legal issues can be put in order before the new activity starts, rather than only after the first problem arises.

Updating documents and procedures

The facility’s documentation should not remain unchanged for many years.

Regulations change, as do the way services are provided, the staff structure and the solutions used in contact with patients.

As part of ongoing cooperation, we help keep the following up to date:

• patient forms,
• consents,
• internal procedures,
• contracts,
• regulations,
• staff documentation,
• personal data protection solutions.

This helps avoid a situation where the facility still uses documents prepared several years earlier, even though its activity now looks completely different.

Representation in disputes

If, despite preventive measures, a dispute arises, ongoing services may also include handling it.

Our firm represents medical entities in matters concerning, among other things, patient claims, medical liability, patient rights and other disputes related to the facility’s activity.

Our help may cover the pre-trial stage, negotiations and representation in court or administrative proceedings.

Thanks to previous cooperation, we know how the facility operates and the documentation it uses, which makes it easier to quickly gather the information needed to prepare a position.

Ongoing services or a one-off consultation?

Not every facility needs ongoing cooperation with a law firm.

If legal problems arise only occasionally, individual consultations may be sufficient. In the case of clinics and entities that employ larger staff, provide various types of services or regularly deal with patient-related issues, ongoing services make it possible to respond faster and keep the solutions used consistent.

We agree the model of cooperation individually – depending on the size of the facility, the number of matters and the scope of support needed.

Ongoing legal services – not only when a problem arises

In medical law, many difficult situations can be limited if appropriate steps are taken in advance.

That is why we treat ongoing services not only as help in solving current problems, but also as preventive action.

We know the specifics of the facility, help update documentation, answer day-to-day questions and point out solutions that may create risk.

As a result, the owners and staff can focus on running the facility and providing care, with constant access to legal support.

Our aim is to provide the facility with support that helps it operate lawfully, respond efficiently to problems and limit risk before it turns into a serious dispute.