Medical Malpractice Attorney

Seeking medical care, whether for a routine check-up or a complex procedure, is something most of us do with trust in the expertise of healthcare professionals. Unfortunately, even a simple visit to the doctor or a scheduled surgery can result in serious consequences if the standard of care is not met. Medical malpractice can be difficult to identify, but if you or a loved one has been harmed due to the negligence of a doctor, nurse, or other healthcare provider, it’s critical to reach out to a skilled attorney right away.

The sooner you contact a lawyer, the better your chances are of collecting necessary evidence, obtaining medical records, and avoiding potential issues with statutes of limitations that can bar your claim. We will work diligently to ensure that you are fully informed about your legal options.

Medical malpractice can result in a wide variety of injuries, ranging from minor to life-altering conditions. Some of the most common injuries include:

• Surgical Errors: Mistakes made during surgery can cause serious complications. These errors may involve bowel perforation, nicking arteries, damaging nerves, or performing surgery on the wrong body part. Another common surgical mistake is leaving medical instruments or foreign objects inside the patient after the procedure.
• Anesthesia Mistakes: Errors during the administration of anesthesia can lead to severe consequences such as brain damage, cardiac arrest, or even death.
• Failure to Diagnose or Misdiagnosis: A failure to diagnose a condition, or an incorrect diagnosis, can delay treatment and allow a disease or condition to worsen, leading to unnecessary harm.
• Medication Errors: This can involve incorrect prescriptions, improper dosages, or failure to warn about side effects, leading to adverse reactions.
• Infections: Infections resulting from surgical wounds or improper hygiene in a medical facility can cause long-term health complications and require additional treatments.
• Failure to Monitor the Patient: Failure to properly monitor a patient during or after a procedure, or to follow up with critical tests or treatments, can have serious consequences.

Medical malpractice payouts often vary based on the severity of the injury sustained. As stated in the Diederich Healthcare Medical Malpractice Payout Analysis, over $4 billion ($4,396,505,050) was paid out for medical malpractice claims in a recent year. The breakdown by severity is as follows:

• Death – 28%
• Major permanent injury – 21%
• Significant permanent injury – 20%
• Severe injuries (quadriplegia, brain damage, lifelong care) – 13%
• Minor permanent injury – 7%
• Major temporary injury – 7%
• Other – 4%

Payouts are also categorized by the type of error that caused the injury. A significant portion of the funds are allocated to cases involving:

• Diagnosis errors – 34%
• Surgical errors – 22%
• Treatment errors – 21%
• Obstetric errors – 10%
• Medication errors – 4%
• Monitoring errors – 4%
• Other errors – 6%

The number of deaths and injuries attributed to medical malpractice is staggering. Estimates from the Institute of Medicine suggest that between 44,000 to 98,000 deaths occur annually due to preventable medical errors, while some studies, such as one published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, suggest the number is as high as 248,000 deaths each year.

These numbers reflect the high stakes involved when a healthcare provider fails to meet their obligations. Malpractice cases often involve not only physical injury but also emotional and financial tolls on the victims and their families.

To win a medical malpractice case, we must prove the following:

1. Duty of Care: The healthcare provider had a duty to provide care to the patient.
2. Breach of Duty: The provider failed to meet the accepted standard of care.
3. Causation: This failure directly caused harm to the patient.
4. Damages: The patient suffered harm or injury as a result.

Medical malpractice cases often require expert testimony to establish that a healthcare provider’s actions fell below the acceptable standard of care. We will work with medical experts in the relevant field to testify to the standard of care, how it was breached, and the resulting injury. Their testimony is crucial in demonstrating that the provider’s actions were negligent.

The “standard of care” is a critical element in malpractice cases. It is the level of care that is generally accepted and practiced by medical professionals in the same field. This standard may vary based on the type of treatment, the patient’s individual circumstances, and the specific practices in the medical community.