kco-law

The Next Breast Thing Podcast Ep. 23 & 24

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 21:38:26 GMT

The Next Breast Thing Podcast Ep. 23 & 24 - Parts 1 &2 : How to Prevent and Navigate Medical Malpractice with Special Guest Angela Klein

Show Notes

Are you prepared for a medical malpractice claim? In this first part of a two-part episode, legal expert Angela Klein joins the co-hosts for a conversation about one of the most feared topics in medicine, medical malpractice. They'll cover how breast surgeons can prevent lawsuits, protect their reputation, and respond effectively when claims arise. It’s an essential conversation about preparation, protection, and professionalism in today’s surgical landscape.

Part 1: Part 2:

Little Big Town (Article from Super Lawyers)

Mon, 04 Mar 2024 17:37:52 GMT

Amy Cook Olson

Klein Cook Olson; medical malpractice defense; Steamboat Springs: I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, in another small community comparable to where I live today. Both have ties to Nordic skiing, believe it or not. The Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club was founded by Carl Howelsen, who also founded the Norge Ski Club over 100 years ago. I serve as a board member of the SSWSC, one of the oldest winter sports clubs in the U.S., producing more than 100 Olympian athletes.

Why Colorado?

Cook Olson: My husband and I have three children that we wanted to raise in a small community, and we chose Steamboat Springs because our kids are competitive skiers.

Drawn to Law...

Cook Olson: I became a lawyer to advocate and to try and make a positive impact in people’s lives. I live in the world of medical negligence claims, of doctors, hospitals and nurses, and it’s an incredibly rewarding area to work in, to advise and help healthcare providers navigate litigation. They’re healers.

Narrowing It Down

Cook Olson: I wanted to be in a courtroom, for sure. I started out, as many lawyers did, as a public defender. I had three years under my belt of litigating in criminal law, and then migrated to civil, and went directly to medical negligence, which is just a fascinating area of law to learn medicine alongside your clients.

Pros and Cons

Cook Olson: Steamboat is a very tight-knit community where everyone knows and supports one another. For example, everyone comes together with the United Way to make sure their community center is stocked for anyone who doesn’t have a place to go for Thanksgiving. Our club, SSWSC, is community-focused on building champions on and off the hill. STARS provides life-changing experiences for participants with cognitive and physical disabilities through skiing and other outdoor activities. The drawback to rural practice? You’re going to be distant from clients and from courtrooms at times, but it’s very manageable and workable.

"The" Case

Cook Olson: I was most inspired by a cardiothoracic surgeon client who dedicated his life, day in and out, performing complex heart surgery. [Seeing] the expertise, talent and command of the operating room while he performed an open-heart surgery, while I watched and photographed the procedure in preparation for trial, and ultimately described the surgery to the jury, was a pivotal point in my career. I was hooked.

Why They Stay

Cook Olson: I like the sense of community and giving back and, I guess more frivolous, skiing and having access to a world-class resort. We have a small working farm on the Elk River, which you wouldn’t be able to have in a big city like Denver. My daughter Avery and I also have an apiary, Bee Bomb Honey, and we sell our mountain wildflower honey and our comb and also try to help maintain a healthy, sustainable bee population in this small community.

What is Cyber Liability?

Sat, 04 Jun 2022 14:55:30 GMT

Cyber liability in healthcare is a topic of increasing concern. Healthcare providers are becoming larger targets for phishing, malware and ransomware attacks due to the access the patient database can provide. Knowing your vulnerabilities and what assets you have in play is a critical part of protecting your practice from a malicious attack. Do you have laptops or flash drives that leave the building? How are they protected? How are patient files stored and who has access? Have you provided training to your staff on how to identify and respond to potential cyber breaches? These are important questions that all practices need to be answering as the healthcare landscape increases. Healthcare practices are now significant users of what is called the “Internet of Things”, the collection of equipment, tools and resources that are part of the internet. These tools speak to each other, gather and provide information, all with the goal of providing more comprehensive healthcare to your patients. But they are also open and vulnerable to breaches. Knowing how to protect those tools and what to do in case of a breach can save time, money and resources. It starts with training your staff to recognize red flags such as suspicious emails, phishing attempts and social engineering techniques. Creating an incident response plan is an effective way to ensure that in the event of a breach, your facility will be ready to handle the situation calmly and efficiently.

The lawyers at Klein Cook Olson, LLC are experienced in advising clients, in particular healthcare practices and entities, in how to reduce the risk of cyber breaches as well as being experienced in litigation involving cyber breaches. We are here to help in many ways, including: cybersecurity readiness assessments (is your current system effective and compliant), assisting with drafting policies and procedures and incident response plans, medical data protection, data breach incident response, health information privacy, privacy gap assessments and regulatory laws.

Training: Klein Cook Olson, LLC also specializes in providing personalized privacy and security employee training for your practice and staff, whether in person or via a web-based portal such as Zoom. This is an area of particular interest for us, as we believe in the importance of educating our clients and providing them resources in order for them to minimize their risks and focus on patient care.

Cyber concerns can be overwhelming and they are certainly on the rise. Remember that Klein Cook Olson is there to assist you.

Colorado’s CANDOR Act

Sat, 12 Mar 2022 15:53:24 GMT

The Colorado CANDOR Act is a voluntary program that went into effect in July of 2019 and provides patients, their families and their healthcare providers with an opportunity to engage in open and compassionate communication in a safe and confidential environment. It is designed to assist with the questions patients and their families have when there is an adverse health care incident resulting in injury or death.

One of the many positive aspects of the CANDOR program is that it is designed to be a non-adversarial process to address questions patients and/or their families have about care and treatment. It affords a healthcare provider the opportunity to honestly and openly answer those questions, discuss the medicine and the clinical judgment and thought process the provider employed in that care.

In certain circumstances, the CANDOR act provides a mechanism by which a healthcare provider can assist a patient or their family financially without a requirement that such payment be reportable to the Board. This is allowed because CANDOR has a requirement that it cannot be initiated once a written complaint or claim demanding payment has been made by the patient or their family.

The CANDOR Act itself does not limit a patient’s ability to use the legal system. A patient or their family may utilize the program, without compensation and release, and still choose to file a lawsuit. The difference is that the discussions and communications that took place during the process – which includes any offers of compensation – remain privileged and confidential and cannot be used by the patient in any further legal action.

While it is not necessary for either party to the conversation to retain legal assistance, it is highly recommended. There are several requirements that must take place for the CANDOR process to be utilized properly and an experienced attorney can not only assist with the initial notices and forms, but also the gathering of information and preparation for the next step of the process: the meeting.

CANDOR is beneficial in that it allows for this safe communication. But, make no mistake, it can be emotionally difficult for both the patient and the healthcare provider. The conversation is taking place with a patient who was adversely affected and it can be hard for them to express what they have experienced, just as it can be difficult for a caring provider to hear their patient’s struggles. However, through that communication, understanding can occur and often lead to resolution of emotional, physical and potentially financial struggles resulting from the adverse outcome.

It is important to note that not all adverse outcomes are the result of negligence by a healthcare provider. Even with exceptional care, those less than optimum outcomes can occur. The conversation piece of CANDOR is designed to assist with an understanding of the medicine and treatment.

The CANDOR process is a very valuable tool, but initiating and following it effectively can be difficult due to the somewhat detailed and strict rules that must be followed. A legal advocate who is experienced in the CANDOR process can take a great deal of burden off of an already difficult experience.