Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

The process of bringing a malpractice lawsuit is a complex procedure. If a person can prove four elements, it will be able to determine whether or not the mistake is malpractice. These are professional obligations or breach of that duty; an injury resulting from this breach; and quantifiable damage.

Plaintiffs must also prove the elements using evidence like expert testimony and depositions.

Incorrect diagnosis and failure to diagnose

The inability of a doctor to accurately diagnose a disease or injury could result in grave complications, or even death. Misdiagnosis is a common cause of medical malpractice. To prove negligence, a person or their lawyer must prove that an experienced doctor in similar circumstances would not have misdiagnosed an illness.

There are many misdiagnosis that could be considered malpractice, however. Even highly skilled and experienced doctors make mistakes, so an allegation of malpractice needs to be supported by other elements like breach, proximate causation and actual injury. If a doctor does not sterilize his equipment prior to giving anesthesia and the patient is infected as a result of this, the doctor might be held accountable.

In the majority of instances, lawsuits claiming that there was a mistake will be filed in the state trial court in which the alleged malpractice took place. Federal courts can be able to handle the case in certain instances. For instance, a case may be brought in federal court if it involves a dispute over a statute of limitations or when there is a significant variety of citizenship among those involved in the dispute. Additionally, some cases are resolved through binding arbitration that is voluntary. This is a non-formal procedure that involves professional decision makers. It is designed to cut costs, speed up legal proceedings, and eliminate the risk associated with overly generous juries. Arbitration is not available in all instances of malpractice.

Dosage for a drug that is not correct

Medication errors are one of the most common causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. These errors can be caused by a physician who writes prescriptions in a wrong format or giving the patient the wrong dosage. These errors are generally preventable. According to the circumstances the hospital or its staff, pharmacist or other health care providers may be held liable for the harms suffered by a patient who was given the wrong dose of medication.

A doctor could prescribe the wrong medication to a patient as a result of an incorrect diagnosis or simply because he/she misreads the prescription. A health care professional could also administer the wrong dosage due to an issue with communication for instance, when nurses read the doctor's handwritten prescription incorrectly or malpractice lawsuit the pharmacist is mistaken in filling out the prescription. In other instances doctors may delay the administration of the correct medication to the patient, which could result in the patient's condition getting worse.

To be successful in a malpractice lawsuit, a victim must establish that the medical professional acted in breach of their standards of care and that the negligence directly contributed to the injuries. This requires testimony from a medical expert. Furthermore, a medical negligence case must demonstrate the extent of the victim's injuries and the damages they suffered as a result of the negligence. This includes the cost of a person's treatment and any wages lost. The greater the loss, the higher the value of the claim.

Unskillful Procedure

It might seem absurd that medical professionals could perform the incorrect procedure on a patient, but this type of mishap occurs. If a surgeon makes this error may be held liable for malpractice. Patients who are injured as a result of an error in surgery could be held liable for any error that occurred during the procedure.

Any health professional who is accused of malpractice must show that the patient was harmed through a specific act or failure to act. To establish this the legal team of the patient must demonstrate: (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 injury and (4) the injuries result in damages that the legal system can deal with.

A breach of the duty of care has no significance unless it causes injury this is why medical malpractice claims are typically based on a legal doctrine known as "res ipsa loquitur." This law states that, in a lot of instances, certain injuries are so obvious and malpractice lawsuit recognizable that they can only be explained by negligent actions.

Depending on the facts of the situation, the plaintiff (the patient or their legally designated representative) or their attorney could make the claim in a federal or state court. The majority of malpractice cases are filed in state court, however in certain situations, a medical malpractice lawsuit can be brought in federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

The wrong-site surgery isn't common however, it could be a case of medical malpractice in the event that the procedure is carried out in the wrong part of your body. This type of error is often caused by miscommunications between the surgical team or pressures on production that result in the surgeon performing multiple surgeries assigned at once. In these instances the surgeon isn't the only one with responsibility for a surgery that was performed on the wrong site since there is a legal rule known as "res ipsa loquitur" which means that the effect of the error is evident and can be attributed to negligence.

If an individual is injured in an operation that was performed on the wrong site, he or her may need additional procedures to correct problems that were aggravated by the mistake. Patients and their families are left with costly medical bills. It is important to take these costs into consideration when calculating the financial cost of medical malpractice claims.

Surgeons are usually found to be responsible for surgical mistakes as they are the ones who are responsible for prepping for the operation as well as double-checking the patient's charts and medical records, coordinating effectively with other members of the medical team and making sure that the incision has been done at the correct place. However, in some cases an anesthesiologist or a hospital could also be held responsible. Medical malpractice claims are usually filed in state courts, but in certain situations, they can be transferred to federal courts.