Medical malpractice means when the patient dies or get an injury during the treatment due to the carelessness of the healthcare provider. Though these cases are rare but results could be devastating when this occurs. Not all the situations in which the patient is unhappy with his healthcare provider or doctor comes in malpractice cases.
Before taking action against malpractice in the court, an attorney should be considered first to determine that you have a valid cause and also the attorney will find an expert to navigate the legal process and prove the case. If someone got hurt at the hands of the medical malpractice, he/she should first speak with the attorney.
Medical Malpractice Types
Following are the common cases of the medical malpractice:
1. Misdiagnosis: Most common claims that are made are delayed or missed diagnosis. When the condition is misdiagnosed by the medical consultant or alternately, he/she fails to identify and analyze the condition for some time period that can cause patient a serious harm or even death. Because in misdiagnosis, wrong prescriptions are suggested that are not suitable for the current condition of the patient. In such cases, the petitioner has to show how doctor mistreated and how a capable doctor should have diagnosed the condition. The treating doctor can be accountable for the misdiagnosis if plaintiff’s attorney proves that a qualified and skilled doctor would not have made this mistake under the similar circumstances.
2. Childbirth Injuries: Medical malpractice can cause many injuries during pregnancy to a fetus and to child during his birth process. Some injuries like brain injury (such as seizure disorders and cerebral palsy), partial or full paralysis, and fractured bones can be severe in most cases. Some of these injuries have natural causes but if they are caused as a result of the negligence of the doctor, then this is the malpractice case.
3. Medication Errors: One common medical malpractice case is medication error. There are many reasons for medication errors. For example, a doctor might fail to notice the interaction of harmful drug, or inappropriately administer a drug. Also in the hospital setting, injury may result by giving the wrong medication to the wrong patient. However, improper dosage is by far the common medication error.
4. Anesthesia Errors: Anesthesia errors are comparatively rare, but if occur it can be dangerous more than the surgery mistakes. Brain damage, permanent injury, or death can occur due to a minor mistake by the anesthesiologist. Common errors or negligence are not informing patient about necessary pre-operative procedures, fail to investigate the medical history of the patient for the possible complications, giving anesthesia too much, using faulty equipment, or not putting tube properly in the trachea.
5.Surgery Errors: Another malpractice case in which a surgeon occasionally make mistake in the operating room or might make errors during surgery such as puncturing a blood vessel or an organ, leaving surgical tool inside the patient body, or operating the wrong part of the body. Also, the nursing staff can be neglectful in the postoperative care which results in giving the wrong dosage, not giving adequate instructions or use of improper procedures that can lead to infection.
