Dream School Guidelines

Explanation:

Negligence in the context of medical malpractice refers to a breach of the duty of care that a healthcare professional owes to their patient. When a physician fails to provide the standard of care expected within their profession, and this failure results in harm to the patient, it constitutes negligence.

In the given scenario, the physician's failure to properly diagnose the patient's condition, leading to an incorrect treatment that caused harm, is a classic example of medical negligence. Negligence doesn't require any malicious intent; it is about the failure to meet the expected standard of care.

It's important to note that the other options listed (defamation, battery, and fraud) are not applicable to this scenario. Defamation involves making false statements about someone's character, battery is the intentional physical harm, and fraud is deliberate deception or misrepresentation, none of which align with the situation described.

In conclusion, the physician's actions in this scenario represent negligence, as they failed to provide the necessary standard of care, resulting in harm to the patient.