Frequently healthcare providers are unprepared to address incidents that can seriously affect a provider's reputation or a practitioner's career. In this article, published in the November/December 2008 edition of Oncology Issues, Mintz Levin attorney Daria Niewenhous and ML Strategies Strategic Communications Senior Vice President Nancy Sterling discuss procedures and protocols that should be in place to prepare practitioners for situations that have the potential to go public and pose legal and or public relations concerns.