What Legal Options Do Victims of Medical Malpractice Have?

After being neglected or injured in the hospital, you may be thinking about what legal options are afforded to victims of medical negligence. Here’s what you need to know about how medical malpractice is defined, what factors contribute to negligence, and what your next steps should be.

Medical Malpractice — What Is It?

Medical professionals like surgeons, doctors, and nurses are responsible for adhering to what is known in the industry as a “duty of care.” A duty of care is the minimum established standard of care that a professional of similar skill, education, and experience should provide. Medical professionals who fail to adhere to their duty of care for a patient may be held financially responsible for damages in malpractice cases.

Malpractice, also called medical negligence, can occur when a professional:

• Fails to make an accurate diagnosis

• Fails to give a patient a diagnosis entirely

• Does not request the right tests for the patient’s condition

• Does not adequately interpret test data

• Does not order or administer the right kind or dose of medication

Why Medical Negligence Happens

Medical malpractice is unfortunate but rarely happens due to gross negligence and disregard for human life or a purposeful decision. In most cases, malpractice isn’t intentional, but rather, the result of overburdened hospitals and overworked healthcare providers.

Despite the fact that physicians, nurses, and other medical professionals may not intend to do harm to a patient, they still maintain responsibility for harm that occurs due to mistakes, errors, and oversights. Hospitals have the responsibility to ensure they are properly staffed and their patient to provider ratio is adequate.

Were You a Victim of Hospital Malpractice?

Do you believe you may have been a victim of negligence or medical malpractice? You may have the legal option to bring a case forward if you experienced any of the following while you were under the care of a doctor or during a stay in the hospital and your medical condition worsened as a result:

• Your diagnosis was delayed or incorrect
• You weren’t appropriately tested according to your chief complaint or your testing was delayed
• You were given a type or dose of medication that you had a reaction to
• Your basic physical needs like hydration and nutrition were not met during a hospital stay
• You contracted a new infection while in the hospital

Learn More About Your Legal Options Today

Victims of medical malpractice often suffer significant damages from the mistakes that negligent medical professionals make. You may have the opportunity to collect compensation for your medical expenses, replacement wages, and physical and mental suffering. Call personal injury attorney Frank D. Butler today for an appointment to discuss your case at 1-800-253-2531.