Real Dental Malpractice Story: The Case of a Root Canal Mishap

You’re a dental professional about to perform a routine procedure on a patient. You expect the treatment to save your patient’s tooth, alleviate pain, and prevent more serious infections. What you probably don’t expect is an accident that sends the dental patient to the hospital.

For one of our clients, a dental professional with a young practice, this scenario became a scary reality. While halfway through a root canal procedure, he received some alarming news about a potentially life-threatening medical emergency for his patient.

Read on to learn about what happened, along with the critical steps our client took to care for his patient, protect his business, and get a speedy resolution for them both.

“I Think I Swallowed Something”

Root canals are generally considered routine procedures. According to the American Association of Endodontists, more than 41,000 are performed each day by general dentists and endodontists to save badly damaged or infected teeth.

That’s what brought the 67-year-old patient, who had been to this practice previously, to see our client in the spring of 2024. As part of the procedure, our client drilled deeply into the crown to remove the nerve in the tooth. He then inserted an Endo File, a 21 mm surgical tool, into the patient’s mouth to measure the depth of the drilling.

While an assistant took x-rays with the Endo File in place, the dentist left the room. When he reentered, he received some concerning news from the patient: “I think I swallowed something,” she said. When the dentist looked inside her mouth, he saw that the Endo File was gone.

Protecting the Patient

The patient didn’t appear to be in immediate distress, but the dentist was well aware of the potential danger his patient faced. An ingested Endo File could obstruct the digestive tract or cause other serious and even life-threatening complications that could require surgery.

As a precaution, the dentist arranged for his office assistant to take the patient to the emergency room. There, x-rays were taken, which showed that the file didn’t appear to be lodged inside the patient. The patient was told to return to the hospital in 48 hours for more x-rays and to visit the ER immediately if she experienced any abdominal pain or other health issues.

Deeply concerned about her well-being and the complications the Endo File could create, the dentist kept in touch with the patient to stay abreast of what was happening and to ensure she was in the clear.

Protecting His Dental Business

On the day the incident happened, our client took another important step: logging in to the Berxi portal and submitting a claim.

The claim was assigned to Kristine Murray, Senior Complex Claim Director at Berxi, part of Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company (BHSIC). Kristine immediately reached out to the client and, two days later, had a phone conversation to get details about the incident.

“He was worried that [the patient] might have to have surgery, especially since she had had a gastric bypass years before,” shares Kristine.

As is normal practice, Kristine offered to speak directly to the patient on behalf of our client. Our client, however, proposed a different plan. “[The client] wanted to speak with the patient directly because they had a good rapport,” adds Kristine. The client also promised to get back to Kristine once there was more information on the patient and to keep Kristine informed on any conversations with the patient.

What the Patient Wanted

When the patient returned to the hospital as instructed, there was positive news: the Endo File had cleared with no damage. The dentist was relieved, especially when the patient made an appointment to come back and have the root canal completed. She did make one request: reimbursement for any healthcare costs incurred that were not covered by health insurance.

Our client then contacted Kristine and asked whether that was something Berxi could help with. Kristine gave assurance that Berxi could. She also provided a release for the dentist to have his patient sign to protect him from potential future claims or liability related to the incident.

Within a few weeks, the patient submitted bills for payment, which totaled $315, and signed the release. Kristine paid the bills and closed the claim — with no attorney involvement or further legal action required. Our client was relieved. “The speed in which we resolved the incident was what the client was especially grateful about,” she recalls.

The Importance of Having an Experienced Malpractice Insurance Provider

In this incident, our client was fortunate that no harm came to the patient and no allegations were made against him. This experience does demonstrate, however, the importance of having an experienced dental malpractice insurance provider that works to help protect you — especially when the outcome may not be as favorable. In this case, having dental malpractice insurance with Berxi enabled our client to:

• Understand the steps needed to take to protect themselves
• Be trusted to navigate the insurance request with the patient themselves
• Have the claim paid quickly and get back to business
• Have flexible insurance limits up to $2M per claim/$4M aggregate
• Be free of any deductible
• Have an empathetic, understanding ear during a crisis

To have this peace of mind for your dental practice and livelihood, start your quote here.

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The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Berxi™ or Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company. This article (subject to change without notice) is for informational purposes only, and does not constitute professional advice. Click here to read our full disclaimer