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What Qualifies As a Medical Malpractice Case?

Posted: Friday, April 5th, 2019 at 7:29 pm

What Qualifies As a Medical Malpractice Case?

We trust our doctors to make the right decisions when it comes to our health. But sometimes, the things we fear the most actually happen. Whether medical malpractice arises out of a simple mistake or a malicious act, you have every right under the law to protect yourself and do fight for compensation. But what qualifies as a medical malpractice case? Is it a simple mistake that causes injury? Does there have to be intent behind the action? While only a qualified medical malpractice attorney in your state can give you the most accurate information based on your particular situation, here are some general things that can qualify as a medical malpractice case.

Doctor-Patient Relationship Existed

In order to claim that a medical malpractice case is present, you have to have had a doctor-patient relationship with the doctor in question. For instance, if you simply know a doctor but they aren’t your physician and you ask them a question, the answer to which lead you astray, you can’t sue them for medical malpractice because you weren’t in a doctor-patient relationship with them. However, once you become a patient of a doctor and that doctor begins to treat you, a doctor-patient relationship is established at that point.

Doctor Showed Negligence

The second requirement that you have to prove in order to bring a medical malpractice case against a physician is that the doctor showed negligence. In other words, the doctor didn’t do what they were supposed to do or they did something that they should have known not to do. Negligence simply means that the doctor failed to, or neglected to, do what they should have done in order to uphold ethical standards as a physician.

Negligence Caused Injury

Thirdly, you have to prove that the negligence and question cause your injury. In other words, if a physician was negligent but the injury and question didn’t come from that negligence, you might have a difficult time proving medical malpractice. However, if your surgeon neglected to follow proper practices and you ended up with a debilitating infection because of it, that’s absolutely a case where negligence caused your injury.

Injury Led to Damages in Question

Finally, you have to prove that the injury caused by the negligence led to the damages in question. What that means is that even if a doctor was negligent and that negligence caused an injury, if the injury was not what led to the damages that you’re filing a medical malpractice suit about, you’ll have a hard time in court. In fact, you might not have a case at all. But as long as the doctor showed negligence, the negligence caused the injury, and that injury led to the damages your filing the suit over, you probably have a solid case.

There are many ways in which a physician can show negligence. Here are just a few.

Failure to Diagnose

If a doctor fails to diagnose you with the condition, and you wind up suffering greatly because of that missed diagnosis, that could be seen as negligence. The doctor needs to be able to diagnose you to the best ability that they have, and if their negligence resulted in a failure to diagnose you properly, that can lead to serious consequences. You need to know what conditions you have so you know how to treat them. If you went for too long without treating an illness because you didn’t know you had it, and not treating it led to even more damages, that’s negligence on the doctor’s part.

Improper Treatment

Another way in which a physician can show negligence is by providing improper treatment. This can mean treating you too much or not enough. Any time a treatment does not fit the condition you have and that improper treatment leads to further damages, that could be seen as negligence in a medical malpractice case.

Failure to Warn Patient of Risks

A physician can also be negligent if they fail to warn you of the risks of a procedure, medication, surgery, or other medical process. You have every right to know the risks of a surgery or procedure, or even a medication you’re going to take, before you decide to move forward with it. Sometimes, doctors failed to warn patients of the risk because they receive financial compensation for selling a certain procedure or drug. If that failure to warn you led you to serious injury or illness, you have every right to take the doctor to court under a medical malpractice suit.

There are many ways in which a physician can show negligence, so don’t feel that if your situation does not appear on this list you don’t have a case. The only person who can tell you whether or not you have a case and help you fight for your rights in court is an experienced and qualified medical malpractice attorney in your state. Never try to go into the legal system on your own. Instead, get a consultation today and take the first step down the road to protecting your health, your freedom, and your future.

 

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