Medical malpractice is a term used to describe medical treatment that breaches the standard of care for doctors, nurses, dentists, and other types of medical professionals, resulting in the patient’s injury or death. The appropriate standard of care here is the quality of medical treatment that a prudent, reasonable medical provider in the community would provide in a similar situation.
While the specific definition of medical malpractice varies from state to state, the most common definition of medical malpractice is as an act or omission by a healthcare provider that deviates from the recognized standard of care in the medical community and results in the patient’s injury or death.
Many people report malpractice incidents after they seek treatment from a healthcare professional in an accident’s aftermath. A Philadelphia personal injury lawyer can provide comprehensive assistance in a similar scenario with regard to both the initial accident and the subsequent medical malpractice.
According to a recent study, medical errors may account for as many as 251,000 deaths annually in the United States, making medical errors the third-leading cause of death in the country.
The most common types of malpractice cases are:
1. Misdiagnosis:
Misdiagnosis generally refers to a medical professional’s failure to competently diagnose a patient’s primary health problem. It is a common form of malpractice among healthcare providers throughout the United States. If a healthcare provider gives a wrong diagnosis to a patient or misses a diagnosis, failing to treat the condition properly, the healthcare provider may have committed medical malpractice. An example of this may be a radiologist who fails to diagnose a readily apparent tumor in a patient.
2. Maternal Death:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently released a report that talks about the frequency with which women in the United States die from health complications associated with pregnancy and the postpartum period.
According to the report, three out of every five mothers who died during pregnancy or childbirth could have survived if they had received proper medical care. The report also found that these preventable fatalities do not just occur during pregnancy or childbirth but are also present for a year after giving birth.
The CDC believes that healthcare providers need to be more proactive about identifying certain health risks and ensuring that patients at higher risks receive the care they need. While the pregnancy and childbirth processes can be unpredictable, and unavoidable complications can potentially arise, the CDC also reports that more than half of all maternal deaths in the United States are preventable.
Preventable maternal deaths may be caused by delayed or missed diagnoses, a medical professional’s failure to identify clear warning signs, and a lack of access to quality health care. According to the CDC’s reproductive health division director, risk awareness, quality services, and early diagnoses can significantly prevent approximately 700 pregnancy-related deaths every year.
3. Anesthesia:
Anaesthesia-related errors can occur when anesthesiologists administer the wrong dose of anaesthesia to a patient for a medical procedure. A wrong amount of anaesthesia can result in serious complications, such as brain damage or death. The wrong administration of anaesthesia often occurs due to a medical professional’s carelessness or negligence.
4. Surgical Errors:
This is another common type of malpractice. When a surgeon performs a surgery incorrectly, deviating from the standard of care, a patient can be injured or killed. Research shows that about 100,000 hospital patients in the United States die because of surgical errors each year. Surgical errors include severe infections caused when a doctor leaves instruments inside of a patient and operations on the wrong part of the body.
Medical malpractice in the United States is a very alarming issue. When a medical malpractice case arises, insurance companies and medical professionals hire a legal professional right away.
If you are the victim of any type of medical malpractice, you should consult a legal professional right away before you speak to anyone else about the accident. The sooner you hire an experienced medical malpractice attorney, the better your chances are of protecting your rights as a victim of a medical professional’s negligence. If you plan to take your case to court, here are some other important considerations that you should bear in mind.
Things to Keep in Mind as a Victim of Medical Malpractice
To ensure that you have a strong case, you should retain copies of your medical treatment and health history. Next, if the medical malpractice case involves birth trauma, the court may consider whether the mother had proper prenatal care and whether she smoked or used drugs during her pregnancy.
In most other cases, the following are common questions that may arise:
- Did the patient follow the doctor's orders?
- Did the patient keep their appointments?
- Did the patient take their medicine as instructed?
- Was the patient honest with the medical professional?
You should keep these facts handy if and when you file a medical malpractice case against a healthcare provider. Experienced personal injury attorneys can help you navigate the legal waters following a medical malpractice incident. You should consider consulting a legal professional as soon as you realize you have been injured. Your lawyer can stand by your side.
