Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

Malpractice litigation is a complicated procedure. If a patient can demonstrate four elements, it will determine whether or not the error is malpractice. These are professional obligations in breach of this duty; an injury resulting from this breach; and quantifiable damages.

Plaintiffs must prove these elements by presenting evidence such as expert testimony, depositions and discovery.

The wrong diagnosis or the inability to diagnose

Inability to recognize an injury or illness accurately can cause serious complications, or even death. Many medical malpractice cases result from mistakes in diagnosis. To prove negligence the patient or their attorney must demonstrate that a competent doctor under similar circumstances and working in the same specialty would not have misdiagnosed the problem.

Every misdiagnosis can be considered to be negligence, but. Even the most skilled and trained doctors make mistakes. Therefore, any claim of malpractice has to be supported by other elements like breach, proximate causation and actual injury. If a doctor does not sterilize his equipment prior to administering anesthesia, and the patient becomes infected as a result of this, he could be held accountable.

The majority of lawsuits involving malpractice are filed in state trial courts where the alleged malpractice occurred. However, federal courts may be able to handle cases in certain circumstances. For instance, a case may be brought in federal court if it involves disputes over a statute of limitations or if there is a substantial variation in the citizenship of the parties to the case. Some claims can be settled through voluntary binding arbitration. This is a less formal procedure involving professional decision makers that is designed to cut 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--also called medication mistakes--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 mistakes are usually preventable. Based on the circumstances, a hospital or its staff, pharmacist or other health care professionals may be held liable for the harms suffered by a patient who was given the wrong drug dosage.

A doctor could prescribe wrong medication to a patient because of an incorrect diagnosis or simply because he/she misreads the prescription. A health professional could also administer the wrong dosage due to a failure in communication. For example, a nurse may read a doctor's script incorrectly or a pharmacist might make an error when filling the prescription. In other situations doctors may delay the administration of the correct medication to the patient, resulting in the patient's condition getting worse.

A victim must prove, in order to win a malpractice claim that the medical professional violated their standards of practice and that their injuries were directly caused by the negligence. This requires the testimony of a medical expert. Medical malpractice cases also must prove the severity and severity of the victim's injuries. This includes the costs of a person's treatment and any wages lost. Generally, the greater a person's losses are and the greater the value of the claim will be.

Incorrect Procedure

It might seem absurd that medical professionals would perform the incorrect procedure on a patient but this type of mishap does occur. The surgeon who makes this mistake can be held liable for malpractice. However, malpractice a patient who is injured due to a surgical error could also be held responsible for any negligence that occurred during the way to the procedure.

A health care professional who is accused of malpractice must demonstrate that the patient was injured due to a specific act, or inability to take action. To establish this the legal team representing the patient must prove: (1) that the doctor was obligated to treat or provide care to the patient; (2) that he violated his duty; (3) that a causal connection exists between the negligence and injury; and (4) the injuries result in damages that the legal system could address.

A breach of duty of care has no significance unless it results in injury. This is the reason why medical malpractice cases are usually dependent on the lawful doctrine "res ipsa locquitur" which states that certain injuries are so obvious they can be explained only through negligence.

Based on the circumstances the plaintiff (the person who filed the claim or their legal representative) or their lawyer can decide to file the case either in state or federal court. Most malpractice cases are filed in state court, but in certain situations the medical malpractice lawsuit can be brought in federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

A wrong-site procedure is a rare error, but it could be considered medical malpractice when the procedure is performed on the wrong area of the body. This type of error is usually caused by a lack of communication between members of the surgical team, or by pressures on production that result in surgeons being assigned multiple surgeries scheduled at the same time. In these instances the surgeon isn't solely responsible for his or her responsibility for a surgery that was performed on the wrong site because there is the legal principle known as "res ipsa loquitur" which means that the effect of the error Malpractice is evident and cannot be traced to 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 problems that were aggravated by the error. This can result in high medical bills for patients and their families. It is essential to consider these costs when calculating the financial burden of medical malpractice lawsuits claims.

The majority of times surgeons are held accountable for surgical mistakes. They are accountable for preparing the patient for the procedure, examining the medical record and chart of the patient, coordinating with the rest of the medical personnel, and ensuring that the incision was made at the right place. However, in certain instances hospitals or anesthesiologists may also be accountable. Medical malpractice claims are typically filed in state courts, but can be transferred under certain circumstances to federal court.