If you or a loved one experienced injuries while at the hospital, how can you know if medical malpractice took place? It’s stressful enough as it is when you go to the hospital for surgery or treatment. Knowing if something was done in error – if it really was malpractice – can be very complicated to understand. This post will walk you through what is considered malpractice and when you should reach out to a medical malpractice lawyer for help.
Medical malpractice
So what is medical malpractice? When we see a medical professional, we expect a certain level of care. We expect them to give an accurate diagnosis and we expect for them to provide us with the correct treatment based on that diagnosis. We place a lot of trust in physicians and expect things to be done correctly.
Medical malpractice is considered professional negligence. It means that the practicing physician (nurse, doctor, or whoever is providing care) did something that goes outside the acceptable standards of care which resulted in injury to the patient. This includes a misdiagnosis, mistreatment (including giving you the wrong prescriptions), not being informed of possible risks, catching an infection while at the hospital, or being injured during surgery.
Claim requirements
You must be able to prove that medical malpractice occurred. It is not enough to just be unhappy with the treatment you received. You need to be able to prove that the doctor or nurse was negligent – which can be difficult.
To file a claim, you need to prove that you and the doctor you are suing had a professional relationship. You both have talked and agreed that he or she would be giving you care. You can’t sue someone you overheard giving medical advice which ended up not working for you.
Second, you have to prove the doctor was negligent. This means that their care was inconsistent with what is considered reasonable and careful. You have to prove that what they did that caused you harm, would not have been done by a reasonable doctor. Many states require you to bring a medical expert to court with you to prove this negligence.
Finally, you need to prove that the negligence actually caused the injury and your injury wasn’t actually a result of your sickness.
What do you do next?
After reading this article, if you believe you or a loved one are a victim of medical malpractice, you should reach out to a medical malpractice lawyer.
A medical malpractice lawyer will handle all the details and paperwork of your case. They will work with the insurance companies (since when you sue the doctor, you are actually suing their insurance company). They will respond to all correspondence on your behalf. And ultimately, they will represent you in court to try to get you the best settlement possible.
Reach out to one of our medical malpractice lawyers today. They will walk with you through this process so you can focus on your recovery and we can focus on getting you the compensation you deserve.