Doctors should ensure their indemnity insurance covers Good Samaritan acts – although they are unlikely to be sued successfully for undertaking them, a European conference has been told.
Successful legal action is "practically unheard of", according to British GP Dr Adam Sandell, who is also a barrister.
Speaking to the Euroanaesthesia conference in Geneva, Switzerland, Dr Sandell said medical codes of conduct in most countries would require a doctor to assist in an emergency.
Most continental European countries would also require a doctor to assist – but the legal system in England, Wales and Ireland does not do so, he said.
In the event of an intervention taking place on a plane, international law would make the airline liable for any complications rather than the doctor, he said.
He said: "Most countries have significant protections for people who offer assistance in good faith in emergencies and who aren’t grossly negligent. This is born out in practice: successful claims against doctors who have offered help in good faith in an emergency of this nature are practically unheard of.
"So any doctor who doesn’t do something very stupid indeed can be confident of not being sued."
He added: "Should such a claim be brought there may be several jurisdictions in which it could be brought and a canny claimant lawyer would consider the jurisdiction that’s most claimant-friendly in cases like this. But it’s still very unlikely indeed."
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