Background: there are few studies about the complaints presented against physicians, limiting feedback and education, aspects that tend to improve health services and quality of care.Objective: to characterize the complaints against physicians and their consequences.Antioquia.2008-2013.Methods: cross-sectional descriptive study.
All complaints filed with the Medical Ethics Court of Antioquia, 2008-2013, which had a ruling in the second half of 2018, were reviewed.Characteristics of the personnel involved, event that motivated the complaint, violated regulations and sanction were evaluated Results: among 679 doctors involved, 461 complaints were found, 43.4% of them general practitioners.The main reason for filing a complaint here was the poor care received by patients (20.9%), and the main rule by which processes were opened was Law 23 Article 15, which speaks about informed consent (17.
3%); being also the most sanctioned (16.2%).Most of doctors involved (58.6%) had the processes archived because the court did not find a basis for the complaint; however, 23 (3.4%) were sanctioned, with suspension from the practice of medicine in 60.
8%.Of the remaining, bushranger awning 17.4% had public censorship, 13% private reprimand and 8.7% private written censor-ship or public verbal censorship.Conclusions: the omission or poor completion of the informed consent constitutes the main reason for sanction; however, the real trigger that leads to filing a complaint is the perception of poor attention.
Continuous ethical education in professional practice is fundamental in reducing law-suits for malpractice.