There might be nothing more stressful than anticipating an upcoming complex surgery and/or medical procedure that just might save your life. However, all too often, medial doctors are placed on a pedestal. They are considered infallible in their diagnoses and medical methodology. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Fact is, doctors and medical professionals are perfectly capable of making mistakes, sometimes big ones. Says the legal professionals at the Barnes Firm New York, when medical professionals including surgeons and doctors make gaffs, innocent patients can become the victim of severe injury and/or death. That’s why a patient who’s suffered from medical malpractice, along with his family, needs to contact a reputable personal injury attorney who specializes in medical malpractice to receive the financial compensation they deserve.
In fact, medical malpractice is more common that you might have assumed. According to a recent report, more than 225,000 people die from it on an annual basis. But only 2 percent of these victims ever actually file claims. This is a shame, since medical malpractice can change the course of your daily existence for the remainder of your life.
That said, are you aware or not if you’ve been the victim of medical malpractice? There are several, all too common varieties of medical malpractice and being mindful of them will assist you in deciding if you have a case that needs exploring with a personal injury attorney.
Being Misdiagnosed
Statistics prove that misdiagnosis is the primary variety of medical blunder. The most common misdiagnoses include but are not limited to pulmonary embolism, stroke, celiac disease, heart attack, cancer, thyroid conditions, and Lyme disease.
Many times, a misdiagnosis isn’t due to sheer negligence on the part of the physician, but instead to symptoms that have presented themselves in ways the medical professional wouldn’t have noticed unless he or she was seeking them out. But if a doctor fails to diagnose a condition that they are fully trained to detect, it would then be considered a negligence case.
Misdiagnosis can be harmful to patients since it can result in a delay in treatment and/or sudden death. If a patient is made to undergo a medical procedure he doesn’t need, it can strap him with financial burden.
Diagnosis Delays
Delayed diagnosis is on par with misdiagnosis. A delayed diagnosis can result in harmful outcomes for a patient since their condition will progress in ways it wouldn’t if treated on time.
If a doctor has been less than thorough in the treatment of a patient, it will qualify for a case of negligence. One example of this is neglecting to order a specific test that the patient should have undergone considering his condition.
The key to establishing a good case of medical malpractice due to delay in diagnosis, is proving that your condition would be better had the medical professional started treatment sooner. With a case of cancer such as pancreatic cancer, this is difficult to prove since its possible the condition would have progressed rapidly even with treatment.
Surgery Mistakes
It’s said that around 50 million surgical procedures are carried out every year in the U.S. alone. Thankfully, most of these are considered a success. But on occasion, a complication occurs, such as performing the wrong procedure, operating on the wrong part of the body, damage of nerves and organs, out of control bleeding, unsterilized surgical instruments, inadequate vital sign monitoring, and more.
Sometimes errors occur when a medical professional doesn’t read the patient’s chart correctly. It can also occur when they fail to review proper medical instructions, or when a patient is cleared “for the wrong surgery.”
At times, surgical errors result in minor inconveniences to the patient. Other times they can result in permanent tissue damage, disfigurement, permanent disability, or death.
Medication Mishaps
By going to a doctor for a medical problem you fully trust them to prescribe the right medication for you. But all too often medication mishaps occur and a patient is given a medication that’s 100 times or more of a dosage than it should be. Or a medical professional can prescribe the wrong meds altogether.
Some of the most common medication script errors are as follows:
–Prescribing the wrong drug
–Writing an illegible script
–Mishaps with medication prescriptions
–Improper monitoring a new medication
Medical malpractice can leave you and/or a loved one with lifelong problems that would have been avoided had the medical professional performed their duties the right way the first time around. If you feel you’ve been the victim of medical malpractice, it’s imperative you consult with a reputable personal injury attorney. You might be due compensation that can greatly improve your financial wellbeing.
