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Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

The legal process for defending malpractice is a complex process. The question of whether or not an error constitutes malpractice depends on whether the patient can establish four legal elements: a professional duty breach of this duty; harm resulted from the breach and the possibility of quantifiable damages.

Plaintiffs must also demonstrate these elements with evidence like expert testimony, depositions, and discovery.

Misdiagnosis and Failure to Diagnose

Failure to diagnose an illness or injury accurately can result in serious complications, or even death. A large number of medical malpractice cases involve incorrect diagnosis. To prove negligence the patient or their lawyer must demonstrate that a competent physician under similar circumstances and in the same field would not have misdiagnosed the condition.

It is not always a case of malpractice, however. Even highly trained and experienced doctors make mistakes. Therefore, the claim of malpractice must be supported by other factors such as breach, proximate cause and actual injury. If a doctor does not sterilize his equipment before administering anesthesia, malpractice lawyer and the patient becomes infected as a result of this, the doctor might be held accountable.

In most instances, lawsuits claiming that there was a mistake will be filed in the state trial court in which the malpractice was alleged to have occurred. However, federal courts could be able to hear cases in specific circumstances. A claim can be brought before a federal court in certain circumstances. For example it could be disputes over the statute of limitations or when the parties are of different citizenships. Some claims are settled by arbitral arbitration, which is a binding process. This is a less formal process involving professional decision makers that is intended to save costs, speed up legal proceedings and remove the risk of overly generous juries. However, arbitration is not available for all malpractice lawyer claims.

Wrong Drug Dosage

Medication errors--also called medication mistakes--are one of the most common causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. They can result from a doctor writing a prescription incorrectly or administering the wrong dosage to patients. These errors are generally preventable. According to the situation the situation, a pharmacist, a hospital or other health care provider could be held accountable for the injuries caused by a patient who was given the wrong dose of a medication.

A doctor can prescribe the wrong medicine because of a misdiagnosis or simply making a mistake in the prescription. A health care provider can also prescribe the wrong dosage because of a glitch in communication. For instance, a nurse may interpret a doctor's prescription incorrectly or a pharmacist could fail to fill the prescription. In other cases the doctor could delay the proper medication, which can cause the patient's condition to getting worse.

A person seeking compensation must prove, to be successful in a malpractice claim, that the medical professional violated their professional standards and that their injuries were directly caused by the negligence. This requires medical experts to testify. A medical malpractice case also must prove the extent and severity of the victim's injuries. This includes the cost of treatment and any wage loss. In general, the greater a loss is, the more valuable the claim will be.

Unskillful Procedure

It might seem absurd for medical professionals to perform the wrong procedure on a patient, but this type of incident can occur. A surgeon who commits the mistake could be held accountable for malpractice. However, a patient who is injured due to a surgical error may also be held liable for any negligence that occurred on the process.

Any health care professional who is accused of negligence must show that the patient was injured by a specific action or inaction. To prove this the legal team of the patient must show: (1) that the doctor was obligated to provide treatment or care to the patient; (2) that he breached that duty; (3) that a causal link exists between the breach and injury; and (4) the injuries result in damages that the legal system can address.

A breach of duty of care has no meaning unless it result in injury. This is why medical malpractice cases tend to be based on the legal doctrine "res ipsa locquitur" which states that certain injuries are so obvious that they can only be explained through negligence.

Depending on the circumstances depending on the facts, the plaintiff (the person who filed the claim, or their legal representative) or their lawyer could choose to file either in state or federal court. The majority of malpractice cases are filed in state court, however under certain circumstances, a medical malpractice lawsuit could be filed in federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

Wrong-site surgery is a rare error, but it may be considered medical malpractice if the procedure is performed on the wrong area of the body. This kind of error is often caused by miscommunication between members of a surgical team or production pressure that results in the surgeon being assigned multiple surgeries at once. In these cases the surgeon is not solely responsible for a misplaced procedure due to a legal rule known as "res ipsa locquitur" which states that the outcome is a matter of fact and cannot be attributed to negligence.

If someone is injured during an operation that was performed on the wrong site, he or her may require additional procedures in order to correct problems that were exacerbated by the error. Patients and their families are left with high medical bills. These expenses should be taken into consideration when calculating the financial consequences of medical malpractice lawsuits.

Surgeons are often held liable for surgical errors because they are the individuals who are accountable for getting ready for the procedure, double-checking the patient's chart and medical records, coordinating effectively with the other members of the medical team, and making sure that the incision is placed at the right place. In some cases hospitals or anesthesiologists can also be held liable. Medical malpractice Lawyer claims are typically filed in state court but they may be transferred under certain circumstances to federal court.