Medical Malpractice Attorneys

Medical professionals must comply with an exacting standard of care for their patients. If a health care provider does not adhere to this standard and that failure results in injuries or other complications for the patient, there could be grounds for a malpractice lawsuit.

A successful malpractice lawsuit could aid in the payment of medical expenses pay back lost wages, and acknowledge pain and suffering. Medical malpractice claims can be complex.

Incorrect diagnosis

The misdiagnosis of a patient is among the most common medical malpractice claims. This type of claim usually involves a healthcare provider not correctly diagnosing a patient with an illness or injury. For example, a physician might diagnose a patient with pneumonia, but the patient actually is suffering from staph. A misdiagnosis can have serious consequences, including death.

According to medical malpractice lawsuits malpractice insurance companies, diagnosis-related malpractice claims account for between 9 percent (obstetrics) and 61 percent (pediatrics) of their total claims. Medical malpractice claims are not as extensive and may be biased towards more serious errors. Claimants are typically closed or abandoned without payment and a lot of good mistakes are not likely to result in an action in a malpractice suit.

To successfully bring a medical malpractice claim the plaintiff must demonstrate that the doctor violated the standard of care in diagnosing the condition. A plaintiff's lawyer must also show that the doctor's mistake directly led to an injury.

The process of litigation in medical malpractice cases is costly time-consuming, emotionally charged and lengthy. Even though the majority of medical malpractice cases are settled outside of court attorneys and expert witnesses are required to invest time and money on negotiations, discovery and trial preparation. Physicians are often required to pay for their malpractice insurance when the claims process progresses. These costs have prompted some to call for tort reform, which will reduce the cost and facilitate faster settlements.

Errors in Treatment

You should expect that when you visit a hospital or doctor to receive treatment, the medical attention you receive will be in line to the standard of care in your locality. This includes accurate diagnosis and a suitable course of treatment and adequate monitoring to ensure that your health improves. However, mistakes made by nurses, doctors, and other medical personnel could be fatal and cause permanent injuries or death.

These mistakes can take a variety of forms. A hospital staff member may mistakenly read the patient's chart and prescribe the wrong medication. This type of error is common in emergency rooms where staff members are under pressure and time is a problem. It could also occur when a physician is treating an issue outside of his or her area of specialization.

Other types of errors comprise prescribing incorrect medications or giving patients a wrong dosage that causes injuries. These errors can be committed by pharmacists, doctors nurse practitioners, physician's assistants, and optometrists. These errors may also include the failure to suggest or prescribe the necessary follow-up procedure to correct the error.

Errors in the prescription process can cause an array of serious injuries. For instance, taking an unapproved blood thinner that's specifically designed for patients with heart problems could cause a bleeding disorder or cause a patient to suffer a stroke. If you've suffered an injury or lost a loved one due to a medical error it is vital to consult a knowledgeable New York medical malpractice lawyer to determine if you can pursue compensation.

Negligence

When medical professionals or doctors fail to follow accepted standards of care, they may be found guilty of carelessness. This can occur in a variety of settings, like hospitals, doctors' office, therapy clinics and nursing homes. If a doctor violates these standards and Medical Malpractice Attorneys the patient suffers lasting harm the doctor may be required to compensate the victim for the harm.

To prevail in a malpractice lawsuit the party who was injured must show that the physician's negligence in performing his professional duties led to the injury. This is referred to as causation and is an essential aspect of the legal norm. The breach must be a direct cause of the injury, and the damages must be quantifiable.

In the case of medical malpractice, the plaintiff's attorney must also convince the jury that it is more probable than not that the physician's decision or inaction resulted in the damages sought. This can be a difficult task since people aren't always clear in their memories or are affected by the opinions that the opposing side will say.

It is important that the lawyer is knowledgeable of how the medical field operates. This knowledge can be used to show that the breach in professional duty caused the patient's injury. Medical malpractice cases are filed in state or federal courts and often include expert witnesses who demonstrate how the standard of medical care was not met.

Punitive Damages

We believe that medical professionals will treat us with skill, care and professionalism. Errors can cause serious injuries, or even death. If the errors result in a wrongful death, victims and their families could be entitled to compensation for the loss they've suffered.

In wrongful death cases hospitals, doctors, nurses as well as pharmacists, physical therapists and doctors along with diagnostic imaging technicians, as well as manufacturers of medical equipment, are all liable to be sued. Because multiple parties could be responsible in a case, it's generally recommended for victims to claim against them all, working with their New York medical malpractice lawyers to determine which persons or companies need to be sued.

Punitive damages are designed to punish the defendant and deter them from repeating the same behavior in the future. In contrast to compensatory damages, which are intended to address specific harms they can be applied to a broad category of people, but they are typically reserved for extreme misconduct.

In a medical malpractice case the primary category of damages is the reimbursement for financial losses. This includes medical costs and lost wages. Your New York medical malpractice lawyer can assist you in determining the amount of your losses by providing expert testimony regarding what constitutes a breach of standard of care within your particular area and specialization. This is an important step because without this evidence, your claim could be dismissed at the preliminary hearing level.