Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

Malpractice litigation involves a complex procedure. If a person can prove four elements, it will determine whether or not the mistake is malpractice. These are: a professional obligation and a breach of that obligation; a repercussion from this breach; and measurable damages.

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

The wrong diagnosis or the inability to diagnose

The inability of a doctor to accurately diagnose an illness or injury could result in grave complications, or even death. Many medical malpractice law firm cases involve mistakes in diagnosis. To prove negligence, a patient or their lawyer must prove that a seasoned doctor in similar circumstances would not have misdiagnosed an illness.

There are many misdiagnosis that could be considered negligence, lawyers but. Even the most experienced and highly trained doctors make mistakes, and an allegation of malpractice needs to be supported by other factors such as breach, proximate causation, and lawyers actual injury. For example the case where a physician fails to properly sterilize their equipment prior to giving anesthesia and the patient develops an infection because of it the doctor could be guilty of malpractice.

In the majority of instances, lawsuits claiming that there was a mistake will be filed in the state trial court in which the alleged error occurred. However, federal courts might have jurisdiction in certain situations. A case can be brought before a federal court under certain circumstances. For instance it could involve the issue of a statute of limitation or when the parties are of different citizenships. Some claims can be resolved through binding arbitration that is voluntary. This is a less-formal process that involves professional decision makers. It is designed to lower costs, expedite the legal process, and reduce the risk that comes with generous juries. Arbitration is not accessible in all cases of malpractice.

Dosage of a drug that is incorrect

Medication errors--also called medication mistakes--are one of the most frequent causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. These errors can be caused by a physician submitting prescriptions in the wrong format, or giving the patient the incorrect dosage. These errors are often preventable. Depending on the circumstances the hospital, its staff, a pharmacist or other health care providers could be held accountable for the injuries suffered by a patient who was prescribed the wrong dosage of a drug.

A doctor could prescribe the wrong medication to a patient because of an inaccurate diagnosis or simply by misreading the prescription. A health care professional could also prescribe the wrong dose due to an interruption in communication like when nurses read the handwritten prescription of a doctor incorrectly or the pharmacist commits an error in filling out the prescription. In other cases the doctor may delay delivering the correct medication, which could result in the patient's health getting worse.

A person seeking compensation must prove, in order to prevail on a malpractice lawsuit that the medical professional breached their professional standards and that their injuries were directly caused by the negligence. This requires medical experts to be able to testify. Furthermore, a medical negligence case must demonstrate the extent of a victim's injuries and the damages they sustained because of the negligence. This includes the costs of a person's treatment and lawyers any lost wages. The greater loss is in the greater value of the claim will be.

Wrong Procedure

This kind of situation is not uncommon. It may seem like a challenge for medical professionals to perform the incorrect procedure on patients but it does happen. A surgeon who commits this error could be held accountable for negligence. However those who are injured due to a surgical error could also be held responsible for any negligence that occurred on the process.

Any health professional who is accused of malpractice must prove that the patient was hurt through a specific act or failure to act. To establish this the legal team of the patient must show: (1) that the doctor was obligated to provide care or treat the patient; (2) that he violated his duty; (3) that a causal link exists between the breach and the injury and (4) the injury results in damages which the legal system may address.

A breach of the duty of care has no significance unless it causes injury that's why medical malpractice claims are usually founded on a legal principle known as "res ipsa loquitur." This law states that, in many instances certain injuries are so obvious and unmistakable that they can only be explained by negligence.

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

Wrong Surgery

The wrong-site surgery is a common error, but it can be considered medical malpractice when the procedure is performed on the wrong side of the body. This kind of error is usually caused by miscommunications between the surgical team or pressures on production that result in surgeons having multiple surgeries at once. In these cases, the surgeon is not alone in his or her liability for a wrong-site surgery because there is an underlying legal principle referred to as "res ipsa loquitur" which means that the effect of the error speaks for itself and cannot be attributed to negligence.

If someone is injured during an incorrect procedure it is possible that the patient will require additional procedures to fix problems that were exacerbated by the mistake. This can result in high medical expenses for the patient and their families. This expense should be considered when calculating the financial impact of medical malpractice claims.

Surgeons are typically found to be responsible for surgical mistakes because they are the individuals who are responsible for getting ready for the procedure as well as double-checking the patient's charts and medical records, communicating effectively with other members of the medical team, and making sure that the incision has been made on the correct site. However, in some cases hospitals or anesthesiologists may be held accountable. Medical malpractice cases are usually filed in state court, however, they can be transferred under certain circumstances to federal court.