Negligence of doctors: how to prove and where to complain

Holding doctors accountable for negligence under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is a rather difficult task. In Russia there is no special criminal liability for medical workers. And in most cases, victims and their representatives have to face the problem of proving doctors’ guilt in causing harm to the health or death of patients. The need to overcome corporate solidarity is also relevant. It often becomes a problem both for obtaining witness testimony and for conducting independent medical examinations.

However, despite all the difficulties, the number of cases against doctors is gradually increasing. Patients learn to fight for their rights, and investigative and judicial practice develops effective methods for investigating medical crimes and their judicial review.

Characteristics of medical negligence

To understand the meaning of the concept of “medical negligence,” it is worth finding out what the expression “professional negligence” means. In the latter case, we are talking about a narrow specialist performing his professional duties improperly. The same applies to dishonest performance of duties by officials.

To put it more simply, negligence manifests itself when, due to incorrect execution of actions or complete inaction, the rights and interests of citizens are grossly limited.

Article 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Negligence (current version)

1. Negligence, that is, failure or improper performance by an official of his duties due to dishonest or negligent attitude towards service or duties in office, if this resulted in major damage or a significant violation of the rights and legitimate interests of citizens or organizations or legally protected interests of society or the state, —

shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of up to one hundred twenty thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to one year, or by compulsory labor for a term of up to three hundred and sixty hours, or by corrective labor for a term of up to one year, or by arrest for a term of up to three months. .

1.1. The same act, entailing the infliction of especially large damage, -

shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of two hundred thousand to five hundred thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of one to three years, with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years, or with compulsory labor. for a term of up to four hundred eighty hours, or correctional labor for a term of up to two years, or arrest for a term of up to six months.

2. An act provided for in the first part of this article, which through negligence entailed the infliction of serious harm to health or the death of a person, -

shall be punishable by forced labor for a term of up to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years or without it, or imprisonment for a term of up to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years, or without one.

3. An act provided for in the first part of this article, resulting in the death of two or more persons through negligence, -

shall be punishable by forced labor for a term of up to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years or without it, or by imprisonment for a term of up to seven years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years, or without one.

Note. In this article, major damage is defined as damage the amount of which exceeds one million five hundred thousand rubles, and especially large damage - seven million five hundred thousand rubles.

What is negligence?

Attention! Blatant medical negligence manifests itself in the following situations:

• examination and diagnosis of the patient were carried out superficially, as a result - an incorrect diagnosis was made and the wrong treatment was prescribed;
• the patient's complaints were not listened to carefully;
• generally accepted methods of providing medical care are violated for no known reason;
• ethical standards are not observed.

Such actions by doctors in individual cases can lead to serious consequences, including the death of the patient. Usually in such situations the concept of “medical error” is used. That is, the professional actions of the physician who was responsible for the patient’s treatment were performed at a low level.

If the patient’s health condition worsened after treatment, we can talk about a medical error, which consisted of:

• the use of an inappropriate, simplified treatment algorithm, although it was worth using complex therapy;
• decisions regarding the use of treatment methods were made untimely;
• the choice of treatment algorithm was wrong;
• the criticality of the patient's health situation is assessed incorrectly;
• incorrect actions of the doctor or complete inaction, incorrect execution of manipulations, dictated by the negligence of the physician, his frivolous attitude towards his professional duties.

For example, the doctor prescribed the use of medications that only harmed the patient’s health. We can also talk about incorrect manipulations during surgery, as well as other factors that pose a real threat to the patient’s life.

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The corpus delicti under Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

If, as a result of the doctor’s negligent actions, the patient’s health condition has worsened, the classification of such actions becomes criminal (if the following factors are present):

• objective factor. Due to the fact that the doctor was irresponsible in the performance of his professional duties (due to various circumstances), the patient’s health was harmed;
• subjective factor. Serious consequences for the patient (including death) occurred as a result of the actions of a certain health worker;
• inferiority. A certain manipulation by a doctor or the use of a drug led to irreparable consequences.

The measure of criminal liability applies to health workers who are officials (engaged in organizational, administrative or administrative activities in the hospital).

Thus, in most cases, officials are held criminally liable for medical negligence.

Under what articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation can doctors be prosecuted?

The most “working” articles are:

1. Article 109 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation . Under Part 2 of this article, a doctor or other health worker can be held liable for causing death by negligence due to improper performance of their professional duties. The maximum penalty is 3 years in prison.
2. Article 118 part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation . This provision is similar to Art. 109 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, only the consequences in this case are different - serious harm to health. The maximum penalty is 1 year in prison.
3. Article 122 part 4 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation . This is a highly specialized norm. It provides for liability for contracting HIV infection due to improper performance of professional duties. The maximum penalty is 5 years in prison.
4. Article 124 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation . Provides for liability for failure to provide assistance to a patient if this resulted, through negligence, of moderate harm to health (Part 1), serious harm to health or death (Part 2). The maximum penalty (for part 2) is 4 years in prison.
5. Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Under this article, they can be prosecuted for providing medical services that do not meet the requirements for the safety of life or health of people. Under Part 1 of this article they are attracted regardless of the presence of consequences. Causing serious harm to the health or death of a patient through negligence (clause “c”, part 2) is punishable by imprisonment for up to 6 years. And the death of two or more persons (part 3) – up to 10 years in prison.

Liability for medical negligence under Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which is called “Negligence,” is practically impossible. The reason is that an ordinary doctor or other health worker is not an official within the framework of the definition given in Note 1 to Art. 285 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. And besides, the articles listed above of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, as a rule, are enough to give one or another classification of medical negligence based on the circumstances of what happened and the consequences that occurred.

In practice, if there is medical negligence resulting in death, liability under Art. 109 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Resulting in harm to health - under Article 118 or Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

If we are talking about minor harm to health or the absence of any harm that can be classified as serious, then it usually ends in disciplinary liability.

Regardless of whether the doctor is brought to criminal or disciplinary liability, victims and their close relatives have the opportunity to file a civil claim - to demand compensation for damage and compensation for moral damage through the court. True, you shouldn’t count on large sums - the Russian judicial system is very far from foreign practice.

Liability for negligence

The specialist will be held liable if the cause-and-effect relationship between the deterioration of the patient’s health condition and the actions of the physician is undeniable.

This crime will be qualified under various parts of Art. 293 of the Criminal Code. It all depends on the consequences that resulted from medical negligence.

Please note! Part 1 of Article 293 of the Code provides:

• penalties reaching up to 120,000 rubles;
• performing mandatory work (up to 360 hours);
• corrected work (for a period of up to a year);
• may be arrested (with a period of arrest of up to 3 months).

If the doctor’s dishonest actions lead to particularly large damage, the punishment will be a fine in the amount of 200,000 to 500,000 rubles. or in the amount of salary or other income received by the convicted person for 1-3 years.

In this case, the doctor is deprived of the right to occupy certain positions or perform activities (for a period of 3 years), or a punishment is imposed without such an additional measure.

Other punishments include compulsory labor for up to 480 hours, corrected. work for a period of up to 2 years can also be arrested (with a duration of arrest of up to 6 months).

Important! If, as a result of the negligent activity of a doctor, the death of a citizen occurs, or serious harm is caused to his health, in accordance with Part 2 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code it is provided:

• bringing the culprit to forced labor. Additionally, they are deprived of the right to conduct prof. activities for a period of up to 3 years;
• the culprit is imprisoned for up to five years plus the additional penalty indicated above (the person cannot work in the medical field).

If the negligent actions of a doctor led to the death of 2 or more people, in accordance with Part 3 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code, the offender may be given the following punishment:

• will be required to perform forced labor for a period of up to 5 years and will be deprived of the right to hold a position or conduct activities in the medical field (for a period of up to 3 years);
• the criminal is deprived of his freedom (imprisonment for up to 7 years), plus he is deprived of the opportunity to get a previous position and lead a professional career. activity (for a period of up to 3 years) or without such a measure.

At the request of the victim, the doctor may be held civilly liable. A statement of claim is written to the court demanding that the doctor recover moral and material damages. The application is drawn up by the patient himself or his relatives.

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Negligence complaint

To the District Prosecutor's Office _________, _________ Address: ___________________________ From: ___________________________ Address: ___________________________

Complaint

In the year _____________ I, _________________________, lost my passport, about which I wrote a statement in the year ____________. In this statement, I indicated the circumstances under which this passport was lost. The local police officer of the Department of Internal Affairs for the district of __________, _______ ml. Police lieutenant ___________ carried out an investigation into the loss of the passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation. Based on this check, it was decided to issue me a certificate of lost passport. This certificate was provided to me. After losing my passport, that same month I began to receive numerous calls from different banks reporting strange loan debts. I explained that I did not take out any loans and did not have any debts to the bank. However, OOO KB "_____________" did not call me and did not inform me about any debts. I also did not receive any notifications about the formation of debt and the timing of its repayment. I did not change my residential address or registration address; these data are indicated in the loan agreement. “__”___________ I was summoned to the Department of Internal Affairs in ______ on facts of illegal processing of loans. I appeared at the appointed time and gave a full explanation of this fact. I have provided all the relevant information. A handwriting examination was carried out, which showed that the documents were not filled out by me and the signature was not mine. It turns out that a crime was committed against me. In accordance with Article 140 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation: 1. The reasons for initiating a criminal case are: 1) a statement of a crime; 2) surrender; 3) a message about a crime committed or being prepared, received from other sources; 4) the prosecutor’s decision to forward the relevant materials to the preliminary investigation body to resolve the issue of criminal prosecution. 1.1. The reason for initiating a criminal case for crimes provided for in Articles 198 - 199.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is only those materials that are sent by the tax authorities in accordance with the legislation on taxes and fees to resolve the issue of initiating a criminal case. 2. The basis for initiating a criminal case is the presence of sufficient data indicating the signs of a crime. In accordance with Art. 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation: The inquiry officer, the inquiry body, the investigator, the head of the investigative body are obliged to accept, verify a message about any committed or impending crime and, within the competence established by this Code, make a decision on it no later than 3 days from the date of receipt of the specified message. When checking a report of a crime, the inquiry officer, the inquiry body, the investigator, the head of the investigative body has the right to demand documentary checks, audits, studies of documents, objects, corpses and to involve specialists in these checks, audits, studies, and to give the inquiry body a binding written order. on carrying out operational search activities. 2. Based on a report of a crime disseminated in the media, the inspection is carried out on behalf of the prosecutor by the inquiry body, as well as on the instructions of the head of the investigative body by the investigator. The editorial office and the editor-in-chief of the relevant mass media are obliged to hand over, at the request of the prosecutor, investigator or body of inquiry, the documents and materials at the disposal of the relevant mass media confirming the report of a crime, as well as information about the person who provided the specified information, except in cases where this the person set a condition to keep the source of information secret. 3. The head of the investigative body, the head of the inquiry body has the right, at the motivated request of the investigator or interrogating officer, respectively, to extend the period established by part one of this article to 10 days. If it is necessary to carry out documentary checks, audits, studies of documents, objects, corpses, the head of the investigative body, at the request of the investigator, and the prosecutor, at the request of the investigator, has the right to extend this period to 30 days with a mandatory indication of the specific factual circumstances that served as the basis for such an extension. 4. The applicant is issued a document confirming the acceptance of a report of a crime, indicating information about the person who received it, as well as the date and time of its acceptance. 5. A refusal to accept a report of a crime may be appealed to the prosecutor or to the court in the manner established by Articles 124 and 125 of this Code. 6. The application of the victim or his legal representative in criminal cases of private prosecution, submitted to the court, is considered by the judge in accordance with Article 318 of this Code. In the cases provided for in part four of Article 147 of this Code, verification of a crime report is carried out in accordance with the rules established by this article. Accordingly, the investigator received a statement about the crime committed, exhaustive evidence was obtained about its commission, but for some unknown reasons, a criminal case on this fact was never initiated. Due to the negligence of the investigator and the prosecutor of the year ______________, the Magistrate Court District No. ____ _____________ district of the city __________ made a decision against me to collect a debt in the amount of ________ rubles ___ kopeck. In accordance with Article 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation: 1. Negligence, that is, failure to perform or improper performance by an official of his duties due to dishonest or negligent attitude towards service, if this resulted in major damage or a significant violation of the rights and legitimate interests of citizens or organizations or those protected by law interests of society or the state - is punishable by a fine in the amount of up to one hundred twenty thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to one year, or by compulsory labor for a term of up to three hundred and sixty hours, or by corrective labor for a term of up to one year, or arrest for up to three months. 2. The same act, which through negligence resulted in the infliction of grievous harm to health or the death of a person, is punishable by forced labor for a term of up to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years or without it, or by imprisonment for a term of up to five years with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a period of up to three years. 3. An act provided for in the first part of this article, resulting in the death of two or more persons through negligence, is punishable by forced labor for a term of up to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years or without it, or by imprisonment for up to five years. for a term of up to seven years with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a period of up to three years. Moreover, the damage was caused not only to me, but also to my minor child, since the debt write-off began precisely with the disability pension. In accordance with Article 27 of the Federal Law “On the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation”: 1. When performing the functions assigned to him, the prosecutor: considers and verifies applications, complaints and other reports of violations of human and civil rights and freedoms; explains to victims the procedure for protecting their rights and freedoms; takes measures to prevent and suppress violations of human and civil rights and freedoms, bring to justice those who violated the law, and compensate for the damage caused; uses the powers provided for in Article 22 of this Federal Law. 2. If there are grounds to believe that the violation of human and civil rights and freedoms has the nature of a crime, the prosecutor takes measures to ensure that the persons who committed it are subject to criminal prosecution in accordance with the law. 3. In cases where the violation of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen is in the nature of an administrative offense, the prosecutor initiates proceedings on an administrative offense or immediately transmits a report of the offense and inspection materials to the body or official authorized to consider cases of administrative offenses. 4. In case of violation of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, protected in civil proceedings, when the victim, for health reasons, age or other reasons, cannot personally defend his rights and freedoms in court or arbitration court, or when the rights and freedoms of a significant number of citizens are violated or due to other circumstances the violation has acquired special public significance, the prosecutor files and supports a claim in court or arbitration court in the interests of the victims. Based on the above and guided by current legislation: I ASK:

1) Initiate a criminal case on the fact of forgery of documents. 2) Initiate a criminal case against the investigator for negligence. 3) Assist in resolving my issue 4) Conduct an investigation into this fact and take prosecutorial response measures. 5) Respond in writing within the time limits established by law.

Application:

1) A copy of a certificate from the Department of Internal Affairs for the district of _________, _______. 2) A copy of the message from the Department of Internal Affairs for the district of __________, _______. 3) A copy of the conclusion dated ____________ from the Department of Internal Affairs for the district of ________, _________. 4) Copy of passport.

"___"_____________G. _______________

Where to go

Attention! If, as a result of doctors’ dishonest performance of their duties, your rights and interests are violated, you have the right to contact one of the following institutions (of your own choice):

• to the head physician of a hospital where a doctor works who is dishonestly performing his professional duties;
• to one of the structures of the Ministry of Health - the department of local administration, city government, subject of the Russian Federation. A complaint can be sent without first contacting the chief physician. It also does not matter what response was received from the official and what measures were taken based on the statement. If the actions taken by the administration of the medical institution are not satisfactory to the patient, you need to contact higher authorities;
• to the insurance organization or company where the patient whose rights were violated took out insurance. The program for concluding an insurance contract does not matter, that is, we are talking about voluntary or compulsory insurance. The insurer's details can be found in the insurance policy or on the company's website (via the Internet). The insurance company must study the current situation, evaluate (from a legal point of view) the activities of doctors and the hospital as a whole, and also take appropriate actions to protect the rights and interests of the patient;
• in Roszdravnadzor - the body of the Federal Service for Supervision of Healthcare in the territory;
• send an application to the Prosecutor's Office. Based on the application, an investigation will be carried out regarding the fact of harm to the patient’s health.

ATTENTION! View the completed sample complaint to the head physician:

Watch the video. Deadline for a doctor: will liability for mistakes be tightened and why are such cases difficult?

How to submit an application

When drawing up an application, you need to take into account how many people are involved in the conflict. Based on their number, the required number of copies of the application is prepared. The paper is sent by registered mail with return receipt requested.

This way, the patient will be able to prove in court, if necessary, the fact of sending. The application can also be submitted in person, but the second copy must be marked with acceptance.

The name of the institution, addresses and contact information necessary for feedback are required to be indicated in the application.

ATTENTION! View the completed complaint form to Roszdravnadzor:

Important! In addition, the appeal describes:

• a situation that resulted in harm to health or death of the patient. The date and period of the course of treatment are indicated, what procedures were performed, the actions of the medical professional who made the decision on the course of treatment and medication prescriptions are described;
• the facts of communication with the administration of the medical institution, with the leadership of the Ministry of Health are described. The results of the communication and the actions taken are also listed. A description of these points is necessary when writing an application to the Prosecutor's Office;
• a request is formulated to conduct an internal audit of the actions of doctors or their inaction. Verification is necessary to establish signs of illegal acts;
• a request is made to hold doctors accountable;
• a demand is made for compensation for material, moral and physical damage.

The application is accompanied by documentation, which confirms the presence of corpus delicti in the actions of doctors. The papers are listed in the text of the application as an attachment. The applicant personally signs the written application. In some cases, this is done by an official representative.

The deadline for consideration is 30 days from the date of registration (Article 12 of the Federal Law of May 2, 2006 No. 59-FZ). The applicant must receive a written response to the appeal.

ATTENTION! Look at the completed sample application to the Prosecutor's Office for a doctor:

A response to an application to the Prosecutor's Office can be received within 15 days if it is decided that additional study and special verification are not required (Order of the General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation dated January 30, 2013 No. 45).

If the measures taken by the authorities to which the application was sent did not satisfy the applicant’s demands, a claim is filed in court. But it should be noted that without attempts to resolve the conflict situation pre-trial, the claim may not be accepted, or the case may not be considered.

Another important condition is that the applicant must have a strong justification for his case, which is confirmed by the facts of established cause-and-effect relationships.

You can file a claim within 2 years from the date of the offense. You should not delay, because the more time passes after the incident, the more impossible it is to prove the guilt of the doctors.

The application to the court must be supported by documents indicating the fact of a medical error.

Attention! List of required documentation:

• an agreement with a medical institution on the provision of relevant services;
• receipts confirming the purchase of medications, receipts for payment for services;
• results of examinations and analyses;
• copies of complaints sent to the management of the medical institution, supervisory authorities, and insurance company.

If any of the listed documents is missing, it will be requested through the court.

The evidence base also includes photographs, video materials, audio recordings, and witness statements.

ATTENTION! Look at the completed sample claim to court for compensation for personal injury:

Is medical negligence provable?

Unfortunately, patients pay an exorbitant price for doctors' irresponsible attitude towards their duties. How does the doctor himself pay for his negligence? What responsibility will he bear? The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not provide for an article that concerns the liability of doctors for negligence.

The doctor will be held accountable before the law for showing a criminal attitude towards the patient’s health, indifference and negligence. In this case, his actions are considered as disregard for the provisions and norms regulating the activities of medical workers (Part 2, Part 3 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

Notice! First of all, confirmation of the connection between the criminal acts and the person who committed them will be required:

• the objective side of the crime is considered to be the irresponsible and dishonest attitude of a medical worker towards a patient, if he understood that the consequences of incorrectly taken actions would be disastrous;
• subjectively aware of such a concept as “guilt due to negligence.” In this case, we are talking about the fact that the perpetrator had no idea what the consequences of his inaction might be, or he did, but could not do anything due to the prevailing circumstances. If the court proves that the doctor was unable to prevent the deterioration of the patient’s health, he will not face criminal punishment.

If the court has any doubts about the correctness of the doctor’s actions or inactions, they will be interpreted in favor of the accused.

From the above it follows that if the medical error was not intentional, but arose due to the influence of external factors, such as the lack of modern, functioning medical equipment, then the doctor may be acquitted.

The same may be a court decision if it turns out that the mistake was made due to the extreme fatigue of the doctor who received a large number of patients or performed several operations in a day.

Commentary to Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

The main object of the crime is the normal activity of individual structures of the public apparatus of power and administration. An additional object is property relations, economic interests, life, and health of citizens.

The objective side of the crime is characterized by the following features: 1) the commission of an act, which can be expressed either in inaction (failure of an official to fulfill his duties) or in action (improper performance of his duties); 2) the occurrence of the consequences specified in the law; 3) cause-and-effect relationship between the act and the consequence.

Failure by an official to fulfill his duties consists of actual inaction when there is an obligation to act in one way or another. Improper performance of duties is the performance of duties in violation of the requirements for the activities of an official (violation of deadlines, mistakes, inaccuracies, etc.). Both non-fulfillment and improper performance of duties must be a consequence of the official’s dishonest or negligent attitude towards service.

When determining the objective side of a crime, it is mandatory to establish the following circumstances:

- what specific duties, non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment of which is blamed, were assigned to this official. To do this, you should refer to the relevant documents describing the range of such responsibilities: the law, another regulatory legal act, job description, employment contract, etc. The corresponding responsibilities must be assigned to the person in the manner prescribed by law, in compliance with the necessary procedure (familiarization of the official with the order , job description, terms of the employment contract, signing of necessary documents, etc.). Failure by an official to perform actions that were not part of his official duties does not form part of the crime in question;

- which of the duties assigned to the official were not fulfilled or performed improperly. To constitute negligence, it is not enough just a general, unspecified indication of improper performance of duties (such as: fails to cope with the work, does not correspond to the position held, etc.); it is mandatory to establish and describe the range of specific duties formally assigned to the person;

- whether the official had a real opportunity (objective and subjective) to perform (proper performance) of his duties. The presence of a real opportunity means that a person could fulfill his duties under specific external conditions, and also had a subjective opportunity to do so, i.e. had the required level of professional training, experience, was not in a state of illness that prevented the performance of official functions, etc. If there is no real opportunity to perform duties, then there is no sign of dishonest or negligent attitude towards service, which excludes this crime. Thus, if an official cannot perform any action in his service due to, for example, failure to submit the necessary documents by another official, then he does not have an objective opportunity to perform his duties. If a person makes mistakes or miscalculations in his work due to the low level of his professional knowledge, there is a lack of subjective ability to properly perform his duties. In the latter case, we can only talk about disciplinary liability.

The commission of the specified act (action or inaction) must entail consequences in the form of causing major damage or a significant violation of the rights and legitimate interests of citizens or organizations or legally protected interests of society or the state.

In accordance with the note to Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, damage the amount of which exceeds one hundred thousand rubles is considered major. This damage can be expressed in causing losses in the form of actual damage or lost profits.

A significant violation of rights and legitimate interests may include: violation of the constitutional rights and freedoms of a person and citizen, causing minor or moderate harm to health, creating significant interference and disruptions in the work of state and municipal structures, concealing serious crimes, etc. (see also commentary to Article 285 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

By its design, the corpus delicti is material. The crime is completed from the moment the consequences specified in the law occur. In this case, there must be a direct and immediate causal connection between the action (inaction) of a person and the consequences that occur. Therefore, for example, weakened control over the actions of the investigator that caused harm on the part of the head of the investigative department, performing the functions of monitoring the preliminary investigation in specific cases, does not constitute negligence. This is due to the fact that the actions of the investigator, and not the actions (inaction) of the head of the investigative department, were the cause of the harm.

The subjective side of the crime is characterized by a careless form of guilt in the form of frivolity or negligence. The culprit foresees the possibility of dangerous consequences of an act committed by him as a result of dishonest or negligent attitude towards service, but without sufficient grounds for this he arrogantly hopes to prevent them (frivolity), or does not foresee the possibility of dangerous consequences, although with the necessary care and forethought he should have could have foreseen them (negligence). The guilt of a person, and therefore the element of negligence, is excluded if the committed act does not contain any sign of dishonesty or negligent attitude towards service.

The subject of the crime is special. He is an official.

Part 2 Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation provides for a qualified type of negligence when failure to perform or improper performance by an official of his duties resulted through negligence in causing serious harm to health or the death of a person. The concept of grievous bodily harm is contained in Art. 111 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

A particularly qualified crime (Part 3 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) occurs if the act provided for in Part 1 of Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, caused by negligence the death of two or more persons.

When considering cases of negligence, you should pay attention to the fact that negligence belongs to the category of malfeasance and consists of failure to perform or improper performance by an official of his duties, i.e. responsibilities associated with the position performed. This circumstance distinguishes negligence from failure to perform or improper performance of professional duties not related to official functions. Causing harm in the latter situation should be qualified under other articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, but not under Art. 293 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. For example, if, as a result of the negligence of a nurse, another medicine was administered to the patient, resulting in harm to health, the act should be qualified according to the rules establishing liability for harm to health.

When distinguishing the elements of negligence from other elements of crimes, it is necessary to proceed from the fact that this element is common in relation to a number of special norms (violation of various rules (construction, work, performance of service and others).

Difficulty of the investigation

Cases of medical negligence are quite difficult to investigate. Each of them has its own characteristic features. It happens that the suspect is an experienced and respected doctor who has previously had a lot of well-performed operations.

As a result of such investigations, it turns out that the cause of the medical error was the doctor’s excessive fatigue. As a result, he will be acquitted. If the reason for the negligence committed by a medical worker was his arrogance or irresponsibility, then he cannot avoid punishment.

Attention! In each of the above cases, it is necessary to prove:

• that there was direct intent in the doctor’s actions, or there was no intent;
• The doctor made an incorrect diagnosis and prescribed an incorrect course of treatment.

Negligence and carelessness on the part of nurses and midwives is not uncommon. They usually say that they did everything in their power. Only a special examination can prove the guilt of doctors. For example, whether the patient was allergic to the administered drug, whether the dose of the administered drug was exceeded, etc.