Research has evidenced the various aims of patient-plaintiffs and/or their families in medical negligence litigation, with emphasis frequently placed on the importance of an apology. Drawing on the findings of an empirical study conducted in Ireland, this article contributes to the discourse on apologies in medical negligence disputes. In particular, with reference to the findings of the research and the literature, it discusses components of apologies deemed to be important by patient-plaintiffs and/or their families. The article concludes by arguing that legislative protection for apologies in isolation will not necessarily increase the use or effectiveness of apologies in medical negligence disputes, and a combination of measures is required.

研究已经证明了原告和/或其家人在医疗过失诉讼中的各种目的，并且经常强调道歉的重要性。借鉴爱尔兰进行的一项实证研究的结果，本文有助于对医疗过失纠纷中的道歉进行论述。特别是，参考研究的结果和文献，讨论了患者原告和/或其家人认为重要的道歉内容。文章最后指出，对医学道歉的立法保护并不一定会在医疗过失纠纷中增加道歉的使用或效力，因此需要采取多种措施。