Medical Malpractice Attorneys
Medical professionals must comply with a certain standard of care when treating their patients. If a health-care provider does not adhere to this standard, and if the failure causes injuries or complications for the patient, there may be grounds for a malpractice claim.
A successful malpractice lawsuit can help to pay for medical expenses as well as pay back lost wages and acknowledge pain and discomfort. However, medical malpractice claims can be complicated.
Undiagnosed
Misdiagnosis is one of the most frequently filed medical malpractice claims. This kind of claim is typically filed by a healthcare practitioner who incorrectly diagnoses an injury or illness of a patient. A doctor might diagnose a patient with pneumonia, but in reality the patient is suffering from staph. A mistake in diagnosis can have grave consequences, such as death.
According to medical malpractice insurance companies that cover diagnosis-related malpractice, claims for this type of malpractice account for between 9 percent (obstetrics) and 61% (pediatrics) of their total claims. However, medical malpractice claims data is not comprehensive and could be biased towards more serious mistakes. Additionally, claims are often denied or are closed without being paid and many meritorious errors do not result in a malpractice lawsuit.
To successfully bring a medical malpractice claim, the plaintiff must prove that the doctor violated the standard of care when diagnosing the condition. A lawyer representing the plaintiff must demonstrate that the doctor's error caused injury.
The process of bringing medical malpractice cases is costly time-consuming, emotionally charged and lengthy. Although the majority malpractice cases settle without trial, the attorneys representing both parties as well as expert witnesses must spend time and money on negotiation, discovery, as well as trial preparation. Doctors are also often required to pay for their malpractice insurance when the claims process progresses. These costs have led to calls for reforms to the tort system which could reduce the cost of litigation as well as encourage quicker and more fair settlements.
Treatment Errors
When you visit a doctor or hospital for treatment, you expect to receive medical care that complies with the customary guidelines of practice in your community. This includes a correct diagnosis, a reasonable treatment plan and proper follow-up to ensure that your health improves. But mistakes made by nurses, doctors and other medical personnel can be extremely serious and could result in permanent injuries or death.
These errors can take on a variety of forms. A hospital staff member may misread the chart of a patient and prescribe the wrong medication. This type of error is most common in emergency rooms where staff members are under pressure and time is a problem. It can also happen if a doctor treats a condition that is outside of his or her area of expertise.
Other types of errors comprise prescribing the wrong medications or giving patients the wrong dosage that results in injury. These mistakes can be made by nurse practitioners, doctors as well as pharmacists, physician assistants and optometrists. These errors could also result in a failure to recommend or prescribe the required follow-up treatment to fix the mistake.
A mistake in the dosage of a medication can result in numerous serious injuries. When a heart patient is taking a medication, a blood thinner could cause bleeding disorders that are dangerous. It could also cause stroke. If you've suffered an injury or lost someone you love due to a medical mistake it is vital to speak with a seasoned New York medical malpractice lawyer to determine whether you can pursue compensation.
Negligence
If
medical malpractice lawsuits professionals or doctors fail to adhere to accepted standards of care, they could be liable for negligence. This can happen in many different settings, such as hospitals, doctor's office, therapy clinics, and nursing homes. If a doctor violates these guidelines and a patient suffers permanent harm it could be necessary to compensate for this harm.
To win a malpractice case, the injured party must prove that the physician's negligence in performing his professional duties led to the injury. This is called causation and is a crucial part of the legal standard. The breach must be the direct cause of the injury, and the damage must be quantifiable.
In the case of medical negligence the lawyer representing the plaintiff must convince jurors that it is more likely than not that a physician's actions or inactions caused the damages sought. This is a challenging task as people are not always in the clear or are in awe of what they believe that the opposing side will argue.
It is also essential that the lawyer has a thorough knowledge of the medical profession and how it functions. This understanding can help demonstrate that the breach of professional duty was a direct cause of the patient's injuries. Medical malpractice cases can be filed in state or Federal courts, and often include expert witnesses who explain the standard of care that was not met.
Punitive Damages
We believe that medical professionals will treat us with skill, care and professionalism. Errors can cause serious injuries, or even death. If the errors cause a wrongful demise, the family members of the victims could be entitled compensation for the losses that they have suffered.
In cases of wrongful death, there are claims against hospitals, doctors, nurses, physical therapists, pharmacists as well as diagnostic imaging technicians and even manufacturers of medical equipment. Since several parties could be involved it's usually recommended for victims to claim against them all, working with their New York medical malpractice lawyers to determine which persons or companies should be sued.
Punitive damages are intended to punish the defendant and discourage them from repeating the same behavior in the future. Unlike compensatory damages, which are designed to target specific damages they can be applied to a whole class of people and they are usually reserved for cases of extreme misconduct.
The first type of damages in the medical malpractice lawsuit is the reimbursement for actual financial losses, such as expenses for medical treatment and lost wages. Your New York
medical malpractice lawyer can help you establish the amount of your loss by providing an expert's opinion on what constitutes a breach of the standards of care in your particular area and specialization. This is a crucial step, as without the evidence you require to prove your case, it could be dismissed at the initial hearing.