What Is a Medical Malpractice Claim?

A medical malpractice lawsuit is brought by an individual who is unhappy with the carelessness of a healthcare professional. The patient (or his or her estate if the patient died) must show that the negligence resulted in injury or harm.

In general, lawsuits claiming medical negligence are filed in state trial court. The patient who is affronted must prove four legal elements in order to win the case:

Duty of care

In order to prove a legal claim, the plaintiff must demonstrate that he/she was in the position of being owed a duty by another person or organization and that they failed to meet it. In the case of medical negligence, it is the duty of medical professionals to provide the proper level of care to their patients. Expert testimony is usually used to determine this.

Expert witnesses can help determine proper standards for medical treatment and then reveal how a physician has strayed from these standards while treating a patient. A plaintiff's medical malpractice attorney must then prove that this deviation was directly accountable for the injury of the victim.

Expert testimony is vital as jurors are typically unfamiliar with anatomy and watched a lot medical dramas. This is especially important when it comes to medical malpractice claims, as it isn't easy to establish a minimum standard of care. In the context of medical malpractice cases, the standard of care refers to the level of skill in the treatment, its quality and degree of diligence possessed by other doctors with similar areas of expertise in similar circumstances.

Experts in medical malpractice cases are usually surgeons or physicians who have a similar education and accreditation. It can be difficult to find an expert willing to testify against substandard medical treatment due to the "conspiracy" of silence among doctors.

Breach of duty

If a doctor makes an error that harms the patient, this is considered medical malpractice. The mistakes could cause new injuries or make existing ones worse. Medical malpractice claims can be difficult to prove because they involve complex laws and issues. A good medical malpractice attorney will investigate your case to determine whether a doctor has violated their obligation to you.

Your attorney will establish a doctor/patient relationship between you and your doctor which is essential to prove a malpractice claim. Your attorney will also look into your physician's actions and decisions to determine if they met what is referred to as the standard of care for doctors with similar education, background and geographic location in your state.

Physicians are required by their patients to abide by these guidelines without deviation or omission. In breach of this duty, the doctor failed to meet these standards and resulted in injury to you.

Proving the breach of duty usually straightforward with the help of your attorney's research and expert witnesses. Those experts can testify as to how the doctor's actions do not meet the standards of care and describe how a different medical professional in similar circumstances would have behaved differently. Your lawyer must also connect the breach of duty to your injuries and damages. Your lawyer will examine your medical records tests, prescriptions, test results and imaging scans to create a convincing case that your physician's breach of duty directly caused your injuries.

Causation

All treatments come with a degree of risk, but medical errors can increase those dangers. In order to prove causation, the patient must establish an immediate connection between the alleged negligence of the medical professional and their injury. In many instances, expert testimony is required as well as assistance of a medical malpractice attorney.

For example, not diagnosing a condition or a serious illness is a frequent medical error. If a doctor fails to recognize cancer or any other illness, can have serious consequences for the patient. In this case the patient could experience unneeded suffering, or even death. The doctor could have committed a malpractice by not diagnosing the condition properly.

Proving that your doctor, or hospital was negligent in treating you can be complicated and time-consuming. Evidence could come from number of sources, including medical records tests, medical records, expert witness testimony and depositions. Your lawyer can help you with obtaining and interpreting this evidence, as as representing you in the process of depositions.

It is important to note that only healthcare professionals can be sued for negligence. Unlike receptionists at medical centers nurses and doctors are expected to act in accordance with the current standards of care. That means that a medical professional must be able to predict the effects based on their skills and knowledge.

Damages

In medical malpractice lawsuits courts will hear about financial damages to compensate the victim. These damages can include past or future medical bills, loss of wages as well as pain and discomfort, disfigurement, or loss of enjoyment living. In some cases, punitive damages are awarded in some cases. These are reserved for the most egregious of actions that society would like to discourage.

A medical malpractice claim typically begins with filing a civil summons and complaint in the court. The parties then engage in discovery. It is a process which requires the plaintiff and defendants to are required to give testimony under oath. This could include asking for medical records as well as deposing parties involved in a lawsuit, and interviewing witnesses.

One of the most important elements to prove in a medical malpractice case is that the doctor was under an obligation under law to provide healthcare and treatment to the patient. The second aspect to prove is that the doctor breached that duty by failing to adhere to the medical standard of care. The third aspect is whether the breach caused injury to the patient.

It is important to remember that the statute of limitations (the legally-defined time frame within which a medical negligence claim must be filed) differs from state to state. In New York, the statute of limitations is two years and six months (30 months) from the date on which the underlying act of medical malpractice occurred.