Medical Malpractice Attorneys

Medical professionals have to meet an exacting standard of care for their patients. If a health care provider does not adhere to this standard and this failure causes injuries or complications to the patient, it could be grounds for a claim for malpractice.

A successful malpractice case could help to pay for medical expenses, reimburse lost wages, and acknowledge discomfort and pain. Medical malpractice claims can be complex.

Undiagnosed

Misdiagnosis is one of the most frequently filed medical malpractice claims. This type of case typically involves a health care provider incorrectly diagnosing a patient with an injury or illness. For instance, a doctor might diagnose a patient with pneumonia, but the patient actually has staph infection. A misdiagnosis can have serious consequences, such as death.

According to medical malpractice insurance companies, diagnosis-related claims comprise between 9 percent and 91 percent of claims (obstetrics and 61 percent in pediatrics) or their total claims. However medical malpractice claims data is limited and may be biased towards more serious errors. The claims are usually closed or lapse without payment and many erroneous mistakes won't result in the filing of a malpractice lawsuit.

To successfully bring a medical malpractice claim the plaintiff must demonstrate that the doctor violated the standard of care when diagnosing the condition. The attorney representing the plaintiff must demonstrate that the doctor's error caused injury.

The litigation process of a medical malpractice case can be expensive time-consuming, emotionally charged and lengthy. Although the majority of medical malpractice cases settle out of court, attorneys for both parties and expert witnesses must spend time and money on negotiation, discovery, and trial preparation. Physicians are often required to pay their malpractice premiums as the claims process progresses. This has led to calls for tort reform that would cut down on the cost of litigation as well as encourage more timely and fair settlements.

Errors in Treatment

If you visit a doctor or hospital for treatment, you expect to receive medical treatment that conforms to the accepted practices in your community. This includes a thorough diagnosis and a reasonable treatment program and proper follow-up to ensure that your health improves. However, errors made by nurses, doctors, and other medical staff can be extremely serious and cause permanent injury or even death.

These mistakes can take a variety of forms. For example an employee of a hospital may misread a patient's medical chart and administer the wrong medication. This type of mistake typically occurs in emergency rooms where the time available is limited and staff members are under pressure to provide fast service. It can also happen if the doctor treats a problem that is outside of his or her area of expertise.

Other types of mistakes include prescribing the wrong drugs or giving patients an incorrect dosage that results in injuries. These mistakes can be made by nurse practitioners, doctors as well as pharmacists, physician assistants and optometrists. These errors can also include the failure to suggest or prescribe the follow-up treatment to correct the error.

Mistakes in medication can cause an array of serious injuries. For example, taking the wrong blood thinner specifically designed for heart patients could cause a bleeding disorder or cause the patient to suffer stroke. If you or someone you love was injured by an error made by a doctor, you should consult an experienced New York opelika medical malpractice law firm negligence lawyer to determine if you are eligible to claim compensation.

Negligence

When doctors or medical professionals fail to follow accepted standards of care, they may be liable for carelessness. This can occur in a variety of situations, including hospitals, doctors' offices, therapy clinics, and Vimeo nursing homes. If a physician fails to meet those standards and the patient suffers lasting harm, they may be required to compensate for the harm.

In order to win a malpractice case the person who suffered the injury has to demonstrate that the physician's lapse in professional obligations caused the injury. Causation is a legal requirement that is crucial. The breach has to be a direct cause of the injury and the damages that occurred must be quantifiable. For instance, medical or lost wages.

In cases of medical malpractice attorneys representing the plaintiff must convince the jury that it is more probable than not that the physician's decision or inaction resulted in the damages sought. This can be a challenge because people's memories are not always crystal clear or are in the hands of the opposing side.

It is also crucial that the lawyer has a solid knowledge of the medical profession and how it functions. This knowledge can be used to show that the breach in professional duties led to the patient's injury. Medical malpractice cases can be filed in state or Federal courts, and often require expert witnesses to define the standard of medical care that was not met.

Punitive Damages

We believe that woburn medical malpractice attorney professionals will provide us with the best care and professionalism. However, serious mistakes can happen, leading to lifelong injuries or even death. If the errors cause wrongful death, victims and their families may be entitled to compensation for damages they've suffered.

Wrongful death cases can include lawsuits against hospitals, doctors nurses, physical therapists pharmacists, diagnostic imaging technicians, and even medical equipment. Because many parties could be accountable in a case, it's generally recommended for victims to make claims against all of them in conjunction with their New York medical malpractice lawyers to determine which persons or businesses need to be sued.

Punitive damages are intended to penalize the defendant and deter them from repeating the same behavior in the future. Punitive damages don't have to be restricted to specific damages. They can be applied to any group of people and are only available for extreme misconduct.

In a medical malpractice case the first class of damages is remuneration for financial losses. This includes medical costs and lost wages. Your New York medical negligence lawyer can assist you in determining the amount of your damages by providing expert testimony on what constitutes a violation of the standard of care in the particular area of the case and the specialty. This is an important step since without this evidence, your claim may be dismissed at the initial hearing level.