Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation
The process of bringing a malpractice lawsuit is a complex procedure. If a patient can prove four elements, it will be able to determine whether or not the error is malpractice. These are professional obligations or breach of that obligation; a repercussion from the breach; and quantifiable damages.
Plaintiffs must prove these elements by presenting evidence like expert testimony, depositions, or discovery.
Misdiagnosis or Failure to Diagnose
Inability to recognize an injury or illness accurately can result in serious complications, or death. A lot of medical malpractice cases involve mistaken diagnosis. To prove negligence, the patient or their attorney must show that a competent doctor in similar circumstances and working in the same field would not have misdiagnosed the problem.
Misdiagnosis doesn't always mean malpractice. Even the most experienced and highly trained doctors make mistakes, therefore a claim of malpractice must be backed by other elements like breach, proximate causality and actual injury. If a physician fails to sterilize his equipment prior to giving anesthesia and the patient becomes infected due to this, the doctor may be found to be negligent.
Legal actions claiming malpractice are usually filed in state trial courts, where the alleged misconduct occurred. However, federal courts could be able to handle cases in certain circumstances. A claim may be filed before a federal court in certain circumstances. For instance it could involve an issue regarding a statute of limitation or in the event that the parties have different nationalities. Some claims are settled by arbitral arbitration, which is a binding process. This is a less-formal process that is governed by professional decision makers. It is designed to minimize costs, expedite the legal process, and remove the risks associated with large juries. However, arbitration is not accessible for all malpractice claims.
Dosage of a drug that is incorrect
Medication errors--also called medication mistakes--are one of the main causes of medical
malpractice lawsuits. These errors could be caused by a doctor who has submitted a prescription in the wrong format or giving the patient the incorrect dosage. These mistakes are usually avoidable. Depending on the circumstances, a hospital staff member, a pharmacist or other health care provider could be held accountable for the injuries sustained by a patient who was prescribed the wrong drug dosage.
A doctor could prescribe the wrong medication to a patient because of an inaccurate diagnosis or simply by misreading the prescription. A health professional can also give the wrong dosage due to a lapse in communication. For instance the nurse might take a doctor's prescription and read it incorrectly or a pharmacist may have a mistake while filling the prescription. In other cases the doctor could delay the proper medication, which could cause the patient's illness to worsening.
To win a malpractice case, a victim must establish that the medical professional acted in breach of their standards of care and that the negligence directly caused their injuries. This requires testimony from a medical expert. Furthermore, a medical negligence case must prove the extent of the injuries suffered by a victim and the damages they suffered as a result of the negligence. This includes the cost of treatment for a patient and any wages lost. The greater loss is, the more valuable the claim will be.
Unskillful Procedure
This type of incident is not unusual. It may seem like a challenge for medical professionals to perform the incorrect procedure on patients but it does happen. A surgeon who makes the mistake could be held accountable for negligence. Patients who are injured due to an error during surgery may be held accountable for any mistakes that were made during the procedure.
A health professional accused of malpractice must demonstrate that the patient was injured due to an act or inability to take action. To establish this the legal team representing the patient must demonstrate: (1) that the doctor was required to care for
malpractice Lawsuits or treat the patient; (2) that he breached that duty; (3) that a causal link exists between the breach and the injury; and (4) the harm results in damages that which the legal system may address.
A breach of the duty of care is not relevant unless it causes injury, that's why medical
malpractice law firms claims are typically built on a legal concept known as "res ipsa loquitur." This law says that, in the majority of cases certain injuries are so obvious and recognizable that they can only be explained through negligent acts.
Depending on the facts of the situation, the plaintiff (the patient or their legally designated representative) or their lawyer may present the claim to federal or state court. The majority of
malpractice lawyer cases are filed with state courts, but in certain circumstances a medical negligence case could be filed with a federal district court.
Wrong Surgery
Surgery performed on the wrong site is a very rare error, but it could be considered medical malpractice when the procedure is performed on the wrong side of the body. This type of mistake is usually caused by miscommunications between the surgical team, or due to production pressures that lead to surgeons having several surgeries to perform at the same time. In these situations, a surgeon is not solely accountable for a mistaken-site operation due to the legal principle known as "res ipsa locquitur", which states that the outcome speaks for itself and cannot be blamed on negligence.
If an individual is injured in an operation that was performed on the wrong site it is possible that the patient will require additional procedures to rectify issues that were caused by the error. Patients and their families are left with costly medical bills. This expense should be taken into consideration when calculating the financial impact of medical malpractice lawsuits.
The majority of times, surgeons are held responsible for surgical errors. They are accountable in preparing the patient for the procedure, as well as checking the medical records and charts of the patient, communicating with the rest of the medical staff, and making sure that the incision was made in the correct place. However, in certain instances an anesthesiologist or hospital may also be held responsible. Medical malpractice cases are usually filed in state courts, but may be transferred in certain circumstances to federal court.