SHENZHEN Medical Association has invited 450 experts in the city’s medical field to be the first members of the city’s Medical Malpractice Settlement Expert Bank. According to the new Provisions on Settlement of Medical Malpractice, the candidates for the bank must have senior professional titles for at least three years, good moral standing and professional practices.Around 1,237 medical workers fit the requirements and the association chose 450 from them to identify medical malpractice matters.In the past, patients and hospitals had to settle disputes with the assistance of medical administration departments, with the claimant having to prove an incident was caused by medical malpractice.The experts have been chosen to protect the rights of patients. Medical personnel will carry out independent appraisals for the association without necessarily following directions from medical authorities. Both patients and hospitals can choose a medical team of experts at random when an allegation of misconduct occurs.The expert bank will be connected through computers in Guangdong Province and patients in Shenzhen will have opportunities to choose medical experts in other cities.