Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation
Malpractice litigation is a complex procedure. If an error is malpractice based on whether the patient can prove four legal elements such as a professional duty; breach of this duty; injury caused by the breach and tangible damages.
Plaintiffs must be able to prove the elements using evidence such as expert testimony and depositions.
Incorrect diagnosis or failure to diagnose
Inability to recognize an injury or illness in a timely manner can cause serious complications, or even death. A lot of medical malpractice cases involve incorrect diagnosis. To show negligence, the patient or their lawyer needs to prove that a seasoned doctor in similar circumstances would not have misdiagnosed the condition.
There are many misdiagnosis that could be considered an error, but. Even highly skilled and experienced doctors can make errors. Therefore, a claim of malpractice has to be supported with other elements, such as breach, proximate cause and actual injury. For instance the case where a physician does not properly sterilize their equipment prior to giving anesthesia, and the patient develops an infection because of it, the doctor could be liable for malpractice.
In most cases, lawsuits alleging malpractice will be filed in the state trial court where the alleged error occurred. However, federal courts might be able to handle cases in certain circumstances. For example, a claim may be brought in federal court if it is an issue regarding the statute of limitations or when there is a significant variation in the citizenship of the parties in the case. Certain disputes are settled through binding arbitration. This is a less formal procedure involving professional decision makers that is designed to reduce costs, expedite legal proceedings, and eliminate the risk of overly generous juries. Arbitration is not accessible in all cases of misconduct.
The wrong dosage of medication
Medication errors--also called medication mistakes--are one of the most common causes of medical
malpractice lawsuits. They can be the result of a doctor prescribing the wrong medication or administering the wrong dosage to a patient. These errors are generally preventable. Based on the circumstances the hospital or its staff, pharmacist or other health care provider could be held accountable for the injuries sustained by the patient who received the wrong drug dosage.
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 may also prescribe the wrong dosage due to a lapse in communication. For example nurses might take a doctor's prescription and read it incorrectly or a pharmacist might fail to fill the prescription. In other cases the doctor may delay in administering the correct medication to the patient, which could result in their condition deteriorating.
A victim must prove, in order to prevail on a malpractice lawsuit, that the medical professional violated their standards of practice and that their injuries were directly caused by the negligence. This requires medical experts to provide evidence. A medical malpractice claim also must establish the extent and severity of the victim's injuries. This includes the cost of treatment as well as any lost wage. In general, the greater a loss is and the greater the value of the claim will be.
Unskillful Procedure
It might seem absurd that medical professionals would carry out the incorrect procedure on a patient, however, this type of event is quite common. The surgeon who makes this mistake can be held accountable for negligence. Patients who are injured because of a surgical error may be held responsible for any mistakes that were made during the procedure.
A health professional accused of malpractice must prove that the patient was injured as a result of a specific act, or failure to take action. To establish this, the legal team representing the patient must prove: (1) that the doctor had a responsibility to provide treatment or care to the patient; (2) that he violated his duty; (3) that a causal connection exists between the breach and the injury and (4) the harm results in damages that the legal system could address.
A breach of the duty of care is not relevant unless it causes injury, this is why medical malpractice claims are usually founded on a legal principle known as "res ipsa loquitur." This law states that, in a majority of cases certain injuries are so evident and obvious that they cannot be explained except by negligence.
Depending on the circumstances the plaintiff (the person who filed the claim, or their legal representative) or their lawyer can choose to file either in state or federal court. The majority of malpractice cases are filed in state courts, however under certain circumstances medical malpractice lawsuits can be filed in federal district court.
Wrong Surgery
The procedure that is performed on the wrong site is not common but it can be considered medical malpractice if the procedure is performed in the wrong location of your body. This kind of error is usually caused by miscommunications between members of the surgical team or pressures on production that result in a surgeon having multiple surgeries scheduled at the same time. In these cases, a surgeon is not solely responsible for a wrong-site procedure because of a legal rule known as "res ipsa locquitur", which states that the outcome is a matter of fact and cannot be blamed on negligence.
If a patient gets injured during surgery that is performed on the wrong site and is injured, they may require additional treatments to correct problems caused by the mistake. This results in costly medical expenses for the patient and their families. It is essential to take these costs into consideration when calculating the financial burden of medical malpractice lawsuits.
Surgeons are often accountable for surgical errors because they are the individuals who are responsible for properly making preparations for the operation and double-checking the patient's medical chart and medical records, communicating effectively with the other members of the medical team and making sure that the incision has been made on the correct site. In some cases the hospital or anesthesiologist may also be held responsible. Medical
malpractice lawyer cases are typically filed in state courts. However, under certain circumstances, they can be transferred to federal court.
