Can errors in judgment be considered negligent?

Errors in judgment are not prima facie negligence. Rather, physicians may have differing opinions in any given situation as to how they would exercise their clinical judgment. Thus, errors in judgment are not negligent if they were reasonably made: see Wilson v. Swanson, 1956 CanLII 1 (SCC), [1956] S.C.R. 804 at 812. Accordingly, errors in judgment may or may not be negligent. If the error could not have been made by a reasonably competent physician or nurse with the skill and knowledge that the defendants had, then it is negligent. If, however, it is an error that can be made while acting with ordinary care, the error itself does not constitute negligence.