It’s reasonable to expect that when you go to the doctor’s office or a hospital for medical care that you will receive prompt, thorough, and appropriate treatment. However, this is not always the case.
Medical malpractice is a significant cause of injury and wrongful death in the United States. When physicians make mistakes or are negligent in the care of their patients, catastrophe can occur. Here’s what you should know about medical malpractice, and where to get the legal help you and your family need after a devastating injury or loss.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
Medical professionals owe a certain duty of care to their patients that extends beyond what the average person owes another. Physicians receive specialized training to ensure they have the capability to accurately and appropriately provide patients with medical care and are therefore expected to assume a greater level of responsibility for the health and well-being of their patients.
When a physician fails to meet this duty of care, medical malpractice occurs. Medical malpractice is responsible for hundreds of thousands of injuries and deaths in America every year.
Types of Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice can occur in a number of different ways, including but not limited to:
- Never events. These are situations that result in patient harm that should not ever occur, such as leaving a surgical instrument in a patient’s body cavity after a procedure.
- Medication errors. A doctor may order the wrong type or amount of medication for a patient, or the nurse administering the medicine may give too much or too little to the patient. Other medication errors include prescribing a patient a medicine that causes significant or even deadly side effects when combined with other drugs the patient is already taking.
- Delay in diagnosis or misdiagnosis. Although delays in medical care are common, unreasonable wait times can sometimes lead to the failure to administer appropriate medical care when necessary. Misdiagnosis can lead to both the absence of adequate treatment or the administration of the wrong treatment.
- Negligence. The care and well-being of a patient is the responsibility of medical professionals and the facility providing care for as long as the patient is under said care. If a facility or its staff neglects to properly monitor a patient, it could result in serious injury or death. For example, if a suicidal patient or a patient with dementia is not properly supervised, and they respectively harm themselves or fall, the facility may be held liable.
Injured By Medical Malpractice? Contact Riggs Law Today For Help
Have you or someone you love been injured by a medical professional’s carelessness or negligence? You may be eligible for financial restitution for any expenses you incurred directly as a result of medical negligence.
Contact Riggs Law today for a consultation to learn more about your rights as a victim of medical malpractice or as the family member of someone you lost to wrongful death as a result of negligence. Call us now at (800) 777-8529.
