The Fact
In Helling v. Carey (1974), the Washington Supreme Court ruled that eye doctors were negligent for not giving a 32-year-old patient a simple pressure test for glaucoma, even though the accepted professional practice at the time was not to routinely test patients under 40. Her glaucoma went undetected and damaged her vision. The court held that following professional custom does not protect a doctor when that custom falls short of reasonable care — especially when the test is simple, inexpensive, and harmless.
What This Means
“Standard practice” and “good enough” are not always the same thing. When a cheap, safe test could catch a serious problem, a court has said the custom of skipping it can still be negligence.
Sources
- Helling v. Carey, 83 Wn.2d 514, 519 P.2d 981 (Wash. 1974).
- Moffett, Peter, and Gregory Moore. “The Standard of Care: Legal History and Definitions: the Bad and Good News.” Western Journal of Emergency Medicine 12, no. 1 (2011). https://westjem.com/?p=2090