Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

Malpractice litigation can be a difficult procedure. The degree to which an error is considered to be malpractice is dependent on whether the patient can prove four legal elements that include a professional obligation breach of this duty; injury resulting from the breach; and the possibility of quantifiable damages.

Plaintiffs must be able to prove the elements using evidence, such as expert testimony and depositions.

Incorrect diagnosis or failure to diagnose

Failure to correctly diagnose an injury or illness correctly can result in serious complications, or even death. Misdiagnosis is a common cause of medical negligence. To prove negligence the patient or their attorney must show that a competent doctor in similar circumstances and working in the same area would not have misdiagnosed the condition.

It is not always a case of negligence, but. Even highly skilled and experienced doctors make mistakes. Therefore, a claim for malpractice must be backed by other factors like breach, proximate causes and actual injury. If a physician fails to sterilize his equipment before administering anesthesia, and the patient gets infected due to this, the doctor might be found to be negligent.

Lawsuits alleging malpractice are typically filed in state trial courts where the alleged malpractice took place. However, federal courts may be able to handle cases in certain circumstances. For example, a claim could be filed in federal court in the event of a dispute over the time limit for filing a claim or in the event of a significant variety of citizenship among the parties involved in the case. In other cases, certain claims are settled through voluntary binding arbitration. This is a less formal procedure that is governed by professional decision makers. It is designed to cut costs, speed up legal proceedings, vimeo and eliminate the risk of overly large juries. Arbitration is not available in all cases of malpractice.

Wrong Drug Dosage

Medication errors, also known as medication mistakes, are one of the most common causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. They can be caused by a physician prescribing a prescription in error or giving the wrong dosage to patients. These errors are generally preventable. In certain circumstances the hospital or its staff, pharmacist or other health care provider could be held accountable for the injuries of the patient who received the wrong dose of medication.

A doctor could prescribe wrong medication to a patient as a result of an inaccurate diagnosis or simply because he/she misreads the prescription. A health professional could also give the wrong dosage due to a lapse in communication. For instance nurses might read a doctor's script incorrectly or a pharmacist may have a mistake while filling the prescription. In other situations, a physician might delay the proper medication to the patient, resulting in their condition becoming worse.

A plaintiff 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 attributed to the negligence. This requires medical experts to be present. A medical malpractice case also must establish the extent and damage of the victim's injuries. This includes the costs of treatment for a patient and any lost wages. The greater the loss, the higher the value of the claim.

Incorrect Procedure

This kind of situation is not uncommon. It might seem impossible for medical professionals to perform the incorrect procedure on patients however, it happens. A surgeon who commits this kind of error could be held liable for negligence. However the patient who is injured due to a surgical error could also be held accountable for vimeo any negligence that occurred along the way to the procedure.

Any health professional who is accused of malpractice must prove that the patient was harmed by a specific action or omission to act. To prove this the legal team representing the patient must show: (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 link exists between the negligence and injury and (4) the injury causes damages that the legal system can address.

A breach of duty of care is no meaning unless it result in injury. This is why medical malpractice cases tend to be built on the legal principle "res ipsa locquitur," which states that certain injuries are so obvious they can only be explained through negligence.

Depending on the facts the plaintiff (the person who filed the claim, or their legal representative) or their lawyer could decide to file the case in either state or federal court. The majority of malpractice cases are filed in state court. However, in certain situations the medical malpractice lawsuit could be filed in federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

Wrong-site surgery is a rare mistake, but it could be considered medical negligence if the procedure is carried out on the wrong portion of the body. This kind of error is usually caused by a lack of communication between the surgical team, or by production pressures that result in the surgeon performing multiple surgeries at once. In these cases the surgeon isn't alone in his or her liability for a wrong-site surgery since there is the legal principle known as "res ipsa loquitur" which means that the result of the error speaks for itself and cannot be attributed to negligence.

When a patient is injured due to surgery performed on the wrong site and is injured, they may require additional procedures to repair problems caused due to the surgical error. This can result in high medical expenses for patients and their families. It is important to take these costs into consideration when calculating the financial cost of medical malpractice lawsuits.

The majority of times, surgeons are held responsible for surgical errors. They are accountable to prepare the patient for surgery, reviewing the medical records and charts of the patient, communicating with the medical team, and ensuring that the incision was made at the right place. In some instances the hospital or anesthesiologist could also be held accountable. Medical kirkwood malpractice law firm cases are typically filed in state courts, but under certain circumstances they may be transferred to federal court.