Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

Malpractice litigation is a complex procedure. If a patient can prove four elements, it will decide whether or not the mistake is a case of malpractice. These are: a professional obligation in breach of this duty; an injury resulting from the breach; and quantifiable damage.

Plaintiffs must also demonstrate these elements with evidence such as expert testimony, depositions, or discovery.

The wrong diagnosis and the inability to recognize

The inability of a doctor to accurately diagnose a disease or injury can lead to serious complications or even death. A lot of medical malpractice cases involve mistaken diagnosis. To establish negligence, a patient or their lawyer must show that a qualified doctor in similar circumstances would not have misdiagnosed the condition.

Not every misdiagnosis is malpractice, however. Even highly skilled and experienced doctors make mistakes, so an allegation of malpractice attorneys needs to be supported by other factors like breach, proximate causality and actual injury. For instance, if a physician does not properly sterilize their equipment prior to giving anesthesia and the patient develops an infection as a result, the doctor could be found to be negligent.

Lawsuits alleging malpractice are typically filed in state trial courts, where the alleged error occurred. However, federal courts could be able to handle cases in certain circumstances. A claim may be filed before a federal court in specific circumstances. For example it could be the issue of the statute of limitations or if the parties are of different citizenships. In other cases, certain claims are resolved through binding arbitration that is voluntary. This is a less formal procedure with professional decision makers. It is intended to cut costs, expedite legal proceedings and remove the possibility of excessively generous juries. Arbitration is not accessible in all cases of malpractice lawyer.

Dosage of a drug that is incorrect

Medication errors, also known as medication mistakes, are one of the main causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. They can involve a physician writing a prescription that is not correct or giving the wrong dosage to a patient. These errors are generally preventable. Depending on the circumstances, a hospital or its staff, a pharmacist or other health care professionals could be held accountable for the injuries of the patient who received the wrong drug dosage.

A doctor could prescribe the wrong medicine because of a misdiagnosis or simply not understanding the prescription correctly. A health care provider may also administer the wrong dosage due to an interruption in communication, such as when a nurse reads the doctor's handwritten prescription incorrectly or the pharmacist makes a mistake in filling out the prescription. In other instances the doctor may delay the administration of the correct medication to the patient, resulting in the patient's condition getting worse.

A plaintiff must prove in order to win a malpractice claim that the medical professional violated their standards of practice and that their injuries were directly caused by the negligence. This requires medical expert testimony. In addition, a medical mishap claim must establish the extent of the victim's injuries and the damage they sustained as a result of the negligence. This includes the costs of treatment for a patient and any wages lost. In general, the greater a loss is in the greater value of the claim will be.

Unskillful Procedure

This kind of situation is not unusual. It might seem unattainable for medical professionals to carry out the wrong procedure on patients however, it happens. A surgeon who commits this mistake could be held liable for malpractice. Patients who are injured due to an error during surgery may be held responsible for any error that occurred during the procedure.

A health professional accused of malpractice has to prove that the patient was injured because of an act or failure to perform the act. To prove this the legal team representing the patient has to prove: (1) that the doctor was obligated to care for or treat the patient; (2) that he did not fulfill that duty; (3) that a causal connection exists between the breach and injury and (4) the injury causes damages that the legal system could address.

A breach of the duty of care is meaningless unless it causes injury, which is the reason medical malpractice lawsuits are generally made based on a law known as "res ipsa loquitur." This law states that, in the majority of cases certain injuries are obvious and evident that they can only be explained by negligent acts.

Based on the facts of the case, the plaintiff (the patient or their legally appointed representative) or their lawyer may bring the case in federal or state court. Most malpractice cases are filed in state court, however in certain circumstances medical malpractice lawsuits could be filed in federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

The wrong-site surgery isn't common however, it could be a case of medical malpractice if the procedure is performed in the wrong area of your body. This type of error is usually caused by a lack of communication between members of the surgical team, or due to pressures on production that result in the surgeon performing multiple surgeries at once. In these instances the surgeon is not solely responsible for a wrong-site operation due to the legal principle known as "res ipsa locquitur" which says that the outcome is a matter of fact and cannot be blamed on negligence.

If a patient is injured during an incorrect procedure, he or her may require additional procedures to rectify problems that were exacerbated by the error. This can result in high medical expenses for patients as well as their families. It is important to consider these costs when calculating the financial burden of medical malpractice lawsuits.

Most often surgeons are accountable for surgical errors. They are accountable in preparing the patient for surgery, reviewing the medical records and charts of the patient, coordinating with the medical staff, and ensuring that the incision was made at the right place. In some instances, a hospital or anesthesiologist can also be held liable. Medical malpractice claims are generally filed in state courts, however, in certain situations they may be transferred to federal court.