Shenzhen Pingshan introduces expert teams from six key specialty departments, addressing legal risks in medical cooperation and the protection of patient rights.
On August 18, 2026, Shenzhen Pingshan Hospital of Southern Medical University (Shenzhen Pingshan District People's Hospital) held the appointment ceremony for the first batch of specially appointed experts for specialty transfer. Expert teams from six national and provincial key clinical specialties, representing Nanfang Hospital, Zhujiang Hospital, and the Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, were officially appointed and stationed in Pingshan. This marks a critical step forward following the activation of the new hospital campus and the launch of 11 specialty transfers on July 22, transitioning university-local cooperation from "overall transfer" to "precise integration," and signifying that the hospital's specialty development has entered a new phase of quality improvement and efficiency enhancement.
The flow of high-quality medical resources to grassroots levels is undoubtedly a major benefit for residents of Pingshan, but the deepening of medical cooperation also brings a series of legal issues: how should legal liability be allocated when experts practice across hospitals? How can patients' rights be protected in multi-institution collaborative diagnosis and treatment? After a medical dispute occurs, to whom should the patient assert their claims? As a lawyer who has long focused on the field of medical legal services, this article will analyze the legal risks and response strategies behind this event from a legal perspective, providing practical guidance for medical institutions and ordinary patients.
Legal Liability Allocation for Cross-Institutional Practice: Protection of Patients' Right to Informed Consent and Right of Choice
The experts recruited this time come from several hospitals affiliated with Southern Medical University. They provide consultations and perform surgeries at Pingshan Hospital, which is a typical case of physicians practicing across registered practice locations. According to Article 14 of the Physician Law of the People's Republic of China, after registration, physicians may practice in medical and health institutions in accordance with their registered practice location, practice category, and practice scope, providing corresponding medical and health services. Practicing across practice locations requires going through procedures for change of registration or filing for record.
For patients, this means that when receiving specialist diagnosis and treatment at Pingshan Hospital, it is essential to clearly understand: Has the specialist providing your care completed legal practice registration? Who bears the liability for medical harm caused by their practice? According to Article 1,218 of the Civil Code, if a patient suffers harm during diagnosis and treatment, and the medical institution or its medical personnel are at fault, the medical institution shall bear compensation liability. Therefore, even if the specialist is from another hospital, as long as they practice at Pingshan Hospital, patients can, in principle, claim compensation from Pingshan Hospital.
However, in practice, situations such as two-way referral or remote consultation may arise, making the allocation of responsibility more complex. Lawyers suggest that hospitals should publicly display experts' practice information, and patients have the right to request to see the experts' professional qualifications before receiving treatment. Additionally, when signing informed consent forms before surgery or special examinations, the medical institution's identity should be clearly specified to avoid ambiguity in the subject of rights protection in subsequent claims.
Patient Privacy Protection and Data Compliance in Medical Collaboration
Once the expert team is on site, patient medical records, examination and test results will be shared across multiple institutions. Under Article 1226 of the Civil Code, medical institutions and their medical personnel are required to keep patients' privacy and personal information confidential. Any disclosure of patients' privacy or personal information, or publication of their medical records without patient consent, shall give rise to tort liability.
Additionally, Article 28 of the Personal Information Protection Law classifies medical and health information as sensitive personal information, requiring that processing such information obtain separate consent from patients and implement strict protective measures. Under this "one department, one policy" model of deep collaboration, expert teams may access large volumes of patient data for research or teaching purposes, making it essential for hospitals to establish compliant data-sharing mechanisms.
Legal reminder: When receiving medical treatment, patients should pay attention to whether the hospital has obtained explicit authorization regarding the scope of use of medical record information. If personal information is found to have been leaked, compensation for losses may be claimed in accordance with Article 69 of the Personal Information Protection Law, and complaints or reports may also be filed with the cyberspace administration authorities. On the hospital side, internal data compliance review procedures should be established to clearly define the boundaries of data use; otherwise, they may face dual risks of administrative penalties and civil compensation.
Medical Dispute Rights Protection Pathways: How Patients Can Effectively Assert Their Rights
The presence of expert teams has improved the level of diagnosis and treatment, but medical risks still exist. Once medical harm occurs, patients often face difficulties in defending their rights. According to the Regulations on the Prevention and Handling of Medical Disputes, the channels for handling medical disputes include: negotiation between both parties, people's mediation, administrative mediation, litigation, and others.
In practice, lawyers advise patients to first seal and preserve medical records, including outpatient records, inpatient medical histories, temperature charts, medical orders, laboratory reports, surgical records, and other relevant documents, to ensure the completeness of evidence. If negotiation fails, an application may be made for medical damage appraisal to clarify the causal relationship between the medical institution's fault and the consequences of the harm. Pursuant to Article 1218 of the Civil Code, the patient is required to prove that the medical institution was at fault; however, under certain circumstances, the principle of presumed fault applies, such as when medical records are concealed or refused to be provided, or when records are lost, forged, or tampered with.
For disputes involving experts from other hospitals, patients should clarify the location where the medical treatment occurred. If the surgery was performed at Pingshan Hospital, then Pingshan Hospital is the directly liable party; if consultation from an external hospital is involved, the consulting hospital may need to be added as a co-defendant. Lawyers can assist patients in sorting out the legal relationships and selecting a favorable litigation strategy. Additionally, patients should be mindful of the statute of limitations. Under Article 188 of the Civil Code, the limitation period for personal injury compensation claims is three years, calculated from the date the patient knew or should have known that their rights were infringed.
Hospital Compliance Management Recommendations: Legal Safeguards from "Transplantation" to "Rootedness"
The long-term presence of expert teams imposes higher requirements on hospital compliance management. First, hospitals should sign clear cooperation agreements with the experts' affiliated institutions, stipulating the rights and obligations of both parties, allocation of responsibilities, and ownership of intellectual property, to avoid future disputes. Second, hospitals should improve their internal medical quality and safety management systems, implement the "Key Points of Core Systems for Medical Quality and Safety," such as the surgical safety verification system and the critical value reporting system, to ensure that experts' diagnostic and treatment practices comply with regulations.
At the same time, hospitals must strengthen doctor-patient communication and fully fulfill their duty to inform. According to Article 1219 of the Civil Code, medical personnel shall explain the patient's condition and medical measures during diagnosis and treatment; where surgery, special examinations, or special treatments are required, they shall promptly explain the medical risks, alternative treatment options, and other relevant information to the patient, and obtain their explicit consent. New technologies and surgical procedures introduced by expert teams should be communicated to patients in even greater detail regarding their risks and alternatives, so as to safeguard the patient's right to informed consent.
In addition, hospitals should establish an early warning mechanism for medical disputes, regularly analyze complaint and dispute data, and implement timely rectifications. For experts practicing across hospitals, they should be uniformly included in the hospital medical liability insurance system to reduce practice risks. Lawyers suggest that hospitals may hire legal advisors to participate in cooperation negotiations and institutional development, preventing legal risks at the source.
The flow of high-quality medical resources to the grassroots is a benefit to people's livelihoods, but legal safeguards must keep pace. Whether it is medical institutions or patients, both should exercise their rights and fulfill their obligations within the legal framework, so that "seeing a renowned doctor at your doorstep" can truly become a reassuring choice. If you encounter medical disputes or related legal issues, the Medical Law Team of Guangdong Zhiming Law Firm can provide you with professional support.
