Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

Malpractice litigation is a complicated procedure. If the error constitutes malpractice depends on whether the patient is able to prove four legal elements such as a professional duty breach of this duty; injury resulting from the breach; and quantifiable damages.

Plaintiffs must also prove the elements using evidence, such as expert testimony and depositions.

Incorrect diagnosis and failure to diagnose

Inability to recognize an injury or illness accurately can lead to serious complications, or death. Many medical malpractice attorney cases involve misdiagnosis. To prove negligence the patient or their attorney must show that a competent physician under similar circumstances and in the same area would not have misdiagnosed the problem.

A misdiagnosis is not always negligence. Even the most experienced and highly trained doctors make mistakes, and Vimeo a claim of malpractice must be backed by other elements such as breach, proximate causation, Vimeo and actual injury. For instance the case where a physician is not careful to sterilize their equipment before administering anesthesia, and the patient develops an infection in the process, the doctor could be guilty of malpractice.

In most cases, lawsuits alleging malpractice will be filed in the state trial court in which the alleged malpractice took place. Federal courts could be able to hear cases in certain circumstances. For instance, a claim could be filed in federal court if it is disputes over a statute of limitations or when there is a substantial diversity of citizenship of the parties involved in the case. Certain claims are settled through arbitral arbitration, which is a binding process. This is a less formal process with professional decision makers. It is intended to save costs, expedite legal proceedings, and eliminate the possibility of excessively generous juries. However, arbitration is not accessible for all malpractice claims.

The wrong dosage of medication

Medication errors are one of the main causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. They can be caused by a physician writing a prescription incorrectly or delivering the wrong dose to the patient. These errors are typically preventable. Depending on the circumstances, a hospital staff member, a pharmacist or other health care professionals could be held responsible for the injuries of a patient who was given the wrong dosage of medication.

A doctor could prescribe incorrect medication to a patient because of an inaccurate diagnosis or simply because he/she misreads the prescription. A health care provider may also prescribe the wrong dose due to an inability to communicate for example, when the nurse reads the handwritten prescription of a doctor incorrectly or the pharmacist makes a mistake in filling the prescription. In other instances the doctor could delay delivering the correct medication, which could cause the patient's illness to getting worse.

A victim must prove, in order to prevail on a malpractice claim, that the medical professional violated their standards of practice and that their injuries were directly caused by the negligence. This requires medical expert testimony. 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 and any wage loss. The more loss you suffer is, the more valuable of the claim.

Unskillful Procedure

This kind of situation is not unusual. It might seem unattainable for medical professionals to carry out the incorrect procedure on patients, but it does happen. A surgeon who commits the mistake could be held liable for vimeo malpractice. However, a patient who is injured as a result of a surgical error could also be held responsible for any negligence that occurred along the way to the procedure.

Any health care professional who is alleged to be negligent must show that the patient was harmed through a specific act or omission to act. To establish this the legal team representing the patient has to prove: (1) that the doctor was obligated to provide care or treat the patient; (2) that he violated his duty; (3) that a causal connection exists between the negligence and injury and (4) the injury results in damages the legal system can deal with.

A breach of the duty of care is not relevant unless it causes injury which is why medical malpractice claims are usually built on a legal concept known as "res ipsa loquitur." This law states that, in the majority of cases, certain injuries are so evident and obvious that they can only be explained by negligent acts.

Depending on the facts the plaintiff (the person who filed the claim, or their legal representative) or their attorney may decide to file a lawsuit in state or federal court. The majority of malpractice cases are filed in state courts, however in certain situations a medical negligence case can be filed in federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

The wrong-site surgery is rare but it could be considered medical malpractice in the event that the procedure is carried out in the wrong part of your body. This type of mistake is often caused by miscommunications between members of the surgical team, or pressures in the production process that result in a surgeon having several surgeries to perform at the same time. In these situations the surgeon isn't the only one with responsibility for an incorrect-site procedure because there is an underlying legal principle referred to as "res ipsa loquitur" which means that the effect of the error is evident and can be attributed to negligence.

If someone is injured during an incorrect procedure it is possible that the patient will need additional procedures to correct problems that were aggravated by the error. This results in costly medical expenses for the patient and their families. This expense should be taken into consideration when calculating the financial consequences of medical malpractice lawsuits.

The majority of times surgeons are accountable for surgical mistakes. They are accountable to prepare the patient for the procedure, checking the medical record and chart of the patient, coordinating with the rest of the medical personnel, and ensuring that the incision was made in the proper location. However, in certain instances an anesthesiologist or a hospital could also be accountable. Medical malpractice lawsuits are usually filed in state courts. However, under certain circumstances, they can be transferred to federal courts.