Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation
The process of bringing a malpractice lawsuit is a complex procedure. If a patient can demonstrate four factors, it will determine whether or not the error is a case of malpractice. These are professional obligation and a breach of that obligation; an injury that results from the breach; and quantifiable damage.
Plaintiffs must be able to prove the elements using evidence such as expert testimony and depositions.
Undiagnosed or Incorrectly Diagnosed
The inability of a doctor to accurately diagnose a disease or injury could lead to grave complications, or even death. It is a typical reason for medical negligence. To prove negligence, a patient or their lawyer must demonstrate that an experienced doctor in similar circumstances would not have misdiagnosed an illness.
Misdiagnosis doesn’t always mean negligence. Even highly trained and experienced doctors make mistakes. Therefore, a claim of malpractice must be supported by other factors such as breach, proximate causation and actual injury. If a doctor does not sterilize his equipment prior to administering anesthesia, and the patient develops an infection due to this, he could be found to be negligent.
The majority of lawsuits involving malpractice are filed in state trial courts where the alleged error occurred. However, federal courts might have jurisdiction in certain situations. A claim may be filed before a federal court in specific circumstances. For example it could be disputes over the statute of limitations or when the parties have different nationalities. Some claims can be settled through voluntary binding arbitration. This is a less formal process with professional decision makers. It is intended to save costs, expedite legal proceedings and eliminate the risk of overly generous juries. However, arbitration is not available for all malpractice claims.
Wrong Drug Dosage
Medication errors, also known as medication mistakes, are one of the main causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. These errors could be caused by a physician who writes a prescription in a wrong format or giving the patient the incorrect dosage. These mistakes are often avoidable. Depending on the circumstances, a hospital staff member, a pharmacist or other health professionals may be held liable for the harms suffered by a patient who was prescribed the wrong drug dosage.
A doctor can prescribe the wrong drug because of a misdiagnosis or simply misreading the prescription. A health care provider may also administer the wrong dosage due to an interruption in communication for instance, when nurses read the doctor’s handwritten script in error or the pharmacist makes an error in filling the prescription. In other instances doctors may delay the proper medication to the patient, resulting in their condition deteriorating.
To be successful in a Malpractice Lawsuit (Artrecord.Kr), a victim must prove that the medical professional violated their standard of care, and that the negligence directly caused their injuries. This requires medical expert testimony. Medical malpractice cases also must prove the extent and the damages caused by the victim’s injuries. This includes the cost of treatment and any lost wages. The more loss you suffer of the claim, the greater the value of the claim.
Incorrect Procedure
This type of incident is not uncommon. It might seem unattainable for medical professionals to carry out the wrong procedure on patients, but it does happen. The surgeon who makes this error could be held accountable for malpractice. If a patient is injured because of a surgical error may be held responsible for any negligence that occurred during the procedure.
Any health professional who is accused of malpractice must prove that the patient was hurt by a specific action or failure to act. To prove this, the legal team representing the patient must show: (1) that the doctor was legally obligated to care for or treat the patient; (2) that he failed to fulfill his obligation; (3) that a causal connection exists between the breach and the injury and (4) the harm results in damages that the legal system can deal with.
A breach of duty of care is no meaning unless it result in injury. This is the reason why medical malpractice cases tend to be built on the legal principle “res ipsa locquitur” which says that certain injuries are so obvious they can only be explained through negligence.
Based on the facts of the situation, the plaintiff (the patient or their legally appointed representative) or their lawyer may present the claim to federal or state court. The majority of malpractice cases are filed in state court, but under certain circumstances, a medical malpractice lawsuit can be filed in federal district court.
Wrong Surgery
The wrong-site surgery is a common error, but it could be considered medical malpractice if the procedure is performed on the wrong area of the body. This type of error is often caused by a lack of communication between members of a surgical team, or production pressure that leads to an individual surgeon being assigned multiple surgeries simultaneously. In these instances the surgeon isn’t all-in on his responsibility for a surgical error that is not performed correctly due to a legal principle called “res ipsa loquitur” which means that the result of the error is evident and cannot be attributed to negligence.
When a patient is injured during surgery that is performed on the wrong site the patient may require additional procedures to correct problems that are aggravated by the mistake. Patients and their families are left with high medical bills. It is crucial to take these costs into account when calculating the financial cost of medical malpractice claims.
Surgeons are most often held liable for surgical errors because they are the ones who are responsible for properly preparing for the operation and double-checking the patient’s medical chart and medical records, coordinating effectively with other members of the medical team, and making sure that the incision has been done at the correct place. However, in some instances hospitals or anesthesiologists may be held accountable. Medical malpractice lawsuits are typically filed in state courts, but they may be transferred under certain circumstances to federal court.