Misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis, mistakes made during anesthesia, or a host of other mistakes can make the victim eligible for monetary compensation by means of a medical malpractice lawsuit. Medical mistakes that warrant a medical malpractice lawsuit are many. Medical malpractice or negligence cases should never be handled without the assistance of an experienced malpractice lawyer. Many medical mistakes can lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit. Misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis, mistakes made during anesthesia, or a host of other mistakes can make the victim eligible for monetary compensation by means of a lawsuit. The severity of the mistake and the physical outcome of the patient are ultimately what determine the compensation owed to the victim.
Misdiagnosis: A misdiagnosis is when a doctor inaccurately determines that a patient has a specific condition or disease, then later it is discovered that they in fact have something else. Improper treatment in the form of the wrong medication or unnecessary surgery may lead to injury or even death.
Delayed Diagnosis: This is when the attending physician fails to determine the cause of the patient’s illness until it is too late to provide adequate treatment. The patient doesn’t receive timely medication or surgery and the illness continues to develop. Delays are also caused if a patient is forced to wait in the emergency room too long.
Mistakes in Anesthesia: Anesthesia is the medication that causes a patient to sleep deeply during surgical procedures. Sensitivity to anesthetics isn’t always a known factor and may cause serious problems in some patients. The anesthesiologist is responsible for reviewing all of the patient’s medical history to make sure there will be no adverse effects.
Prescriptions: Mixing medications can cause serious side effects. Doctors must review a patient’s medical records to make sure they do not prescribe a medication that will cause serious side effects if mixed with something else.
Childbirth: Mistakes during childbirth may cause physical harm to the mother or the child or both. The most common mistakes cause broken bones or brain damage. Sometimes too much force is used or the infant is left in the birth canal too long and suffers brain damage due to lack of oxygen.
These are just five of the more common mistakes that warrant a medical malpractice lawsuit. Any time you believe you or someone you care about have been a victim of malpractice or neglect, contact an experienced medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your situation.
What You Should Know
The statute of limitations must also be taken into consideration. All states require that malpractice lawsuits begin within a certain timeframe. Taking action within the allotted time frame is imperative, if you fail to file suit within the statute you will lose your right to recover even if the doctor was negligent.
Medical mistakes that justify a lawsuit are varied. However simply because there was a poor result from a doctor or hospital’s care does not mean they were negligent. Medicine is not an exact science. Different doctors may treat the same symptoms differently. Often there are different was to perform a surgery or even different opinions as to whether surgery is the best option.
Medical malpractice or negligence cases should never be handled without the assistance of an experienced malpractice lawyer. These cases are often very difficult because you have to prove the doctor or facility deviated from the accepted standard of care. Several determinations must be made in order to prove that damages were caused by a physician or hospital.
You can check our Practice Areas page here.