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Ambulatory Care: Five Data-Driven Priorities for Reducing Risk

Here are five risk-reduction priorities: 

1. Recognize the scale of ambulatory risk. Candello data show that ambulatory settings accounted for approximately 49 percent of more than 67,000 malpractice claims asserted between 2014 and 2024.
2. Keep diagnostic risk in focus. Diagnosis-related allegations—especially those involving cancer, cardiovascular disease, and infections—remain among the most common ambulatory claims, with about two-thirds resulting in clinically severe outcomes.
3. Strengthen diagnostic processing and follow-up. Among the nearly 7,500 cases with a diagnosis-related major allegation, the most frequent errors were related to diagnostic processing, patient assessment, and the ordering of diagnostic or lab tests.
4. Reduce risk in ambulatory surgery. Surgical claims in ambulatory settings often involve technical performance issues tied to known complications, along with therapy selection and management concerns.
5. Build trust through clear communication. In 20 percent of ambulatory surgery cases, patients sought care elsewhere because of dissatisfaction—highlighting how communication and relationship breakdowns can intensify perceived harm and litigation risk.

For physicians, the priority is not only delivering safe and efficient outpatient care, but also ensuring that diagnostic processes, surgical decision-making, follow-up systems, and patient communication are reliable across ambulatory settings.

Read more: Data-Driven Priorities in Ambulatory Care