Medical Malpractice Attorneys
Medical professionals must meet a certain standard of care when caring for their patients. If a healthcare provider is not able to meet this standard and that failure causes injuries or complications for the patient, there may be grounds for a malpractice claim.
A successful malpractice lawsuit may assist in paying medical costs or reimburse lost wages and acknowledge discomfort and pain. However, medical malpractice lawsuits can be complicated.
Incorrect diagnosis
Medical malpractice lawsuits involving incorrect diagnosis are common. This type of claim typically involves a health care provider wrongly diagnosing a patient suffering from an injury or illness. For instance, a doctor might diagnose a patient as having pneumonia when the patient in fact has staph infection. A mistake in diagnosis can have grave consequences, such as death.
According to medical malpractice insurance companies, diagnosis-related claims represent between 9 and 10 percent of claims (obstetrics and 61 percent in pediatrics) or their total claims. However the data on medical malpractice claims is not comprehensive and could be biased towards more serious mistakes. Claimants are typically closed or lapse without payment and a lot of good mistakes do not result in the filing of a malpractice lawsuit.
A plaintiff must demonstrate, in order to win a lawsuit for medical negligence that the doctor didn't follow the standard of care when diagnosing the condition. A lawyer for the plaintiff must prove that the doctor's mistake caused an injury.
The process of bringing the case of medical malpractice can be long-winded, costly and emotionally intense. While the majority of medical malpractice cases are settled out of court
lawyers and expert witnesses must spend time and money on discovery, negotiations and trial preparation. Physicians are also often required to pay malpractice insurance as the claims process unfolds. These costs have prompted some to advocate for tort reform that could reduce the amount and promote more timely settlements.
Treatment Errors
You can expect that when visit a doctor or hospital for treatment, the medical treatment you receive will be in accordance with the standard of practice in your locality. This includes a thorough diagnosis and a reasonable treatment program and proper follow-up to ensure that your health improves. However, errors made by doctors, nurses and other medical personnel can be extremely serious and cause permanent injuries, or even death.
These errors can take many forms. For instance hospital staff members may not be able to read a patient's chart and then administer the incorrect medication. This kind of error is common in emergency rooms where staff are under pressure and time is a problem. It can also happen when a physician treats an issue that is outside of their area of expertise.
Other types of mistakes include prescribing the wrong medication or prescribing the wrong dosage to patients which could cause injuries. These errors can be committed by doctors, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, physician's assistants, and optometrists. These errors can also include the failure to recommend or prescribe the follow-up procedure to rectify the error.
Medication errors can lead to many serious injuries. For heart patients, a blood thinner could cause bleeding disorders that are dangerous. It could also cause a stroke. If you or someone you love was injured by an error in medicine, you should consult an experienced New York medical negligence lawyer for advice on whether you are able to seek compensation.
Negligence
Negligence can be a result of medical professionals not adhering to accepted standards. This could happen in a variety situations, including hospitals, doctor's offices, therapy clinics and nursing homes. If a physician fails to meet those standards and the patient suffers permanent harm they could be required to compensate the victim for that harm.
To prevail in a malpractice lawsuit the plaintiff must show that the physician's negligence in performing his professional duties led to the injury. Causation is a legal norm that is essential. The breach must be a direct cause of the injury and the damage that was caused must be quantifiable, such as medical expenses or lost wages.
In cases of medical malpractice lawyers representing the plaintiff have to convince the jury that it is more probable than not that the doctor's actions or inactions led to the damages claimed. This can be difficult because people's memory isn't always clear or they are influenced by the arguments of the other side.
It is also crucial that the lawyer has a solid understanding of the
medical malpractice law firms profession and how it functions. This knowledge will help prove that the breach of professional duty was a direct cause of the patient's injuries. Medical malpractice cases can be filed in Federal or state courts, and usually require expert witnesses to provide the standard of care that was violated.
Punitive Damages
We believe that medical professionals will provide us with the best care and professionalism. Errors can cause serious injuries or even death. If these errors cause an unintentional death, the victims and their families could be entitled to compensation for the losses they've suffered.
In the case of wrongful deaths hospitals, doctors and nurses along with pharmacists, physical therapists, and pharmacists and diagnostic imaging technicians and manufacturers of medical equipment could be sued. Since several parties could be involved it is often recommended for victims to file claims against them all in conjunction with their New York medical malpractice lawyers to determine which persons or businesses should be sued.
Punitive damages are intended to punish the defendant and discourage them from repeating the same behavior in the future. Unlike compensatory damages, which are designed to target specific damages they can be applied to a broad class of people and they are usually reserved for extreme misconduct.
The first category of damages in medical malpractice lawsuits is the reimbursement of actual financial losses. This includes expenses for medical care and lost wages. Your New York medical negligence lawyer can assist you in determining the amount of your damages by presenting an expert opinion on what constitutes a breach of normal care for the case's location and specialty. This is a crucial step because without this evidence, your claim could be denied at the preliminary hearing.