When you are cared for by a medical professional or hospital, you expect to be treated professionally and with the best possible care, but that is not always the case. Sometimes, medical malpractice occurs and causes a patient injury. If you suspect you are a medical malpractice victim, contact our Milwaukee medical malpractice lawyers at Martin Law Office, S.C., for legal assistance today.
Medical malpractice is when a healthcare professional or medical facility injures a patient through omission or negligence. Negligence can be due to many things, such as an error in treatment, diagnosis, health management, or aftercare. For a case to be medical malpractice in Wisconsin, the following must be true:
Various medical standards are recognized in medicine as acceptable treatments by medical professionals in similar cases, known as the standard of care. As a patient, you have a right to expect medical professionals to provide care that upholds these standards. If it is found that the standard of care was not followed, there may have been negligence.
For your medical malpractice claim to hold up, it is insufficient to argue that the standard of care was violated. You must prove that you suffered an injury that would not have happened without negligent care. Having an unfavorable medical outcome is not the basis of a successful medical malpractice claim. You must prove that negligence caused your injuries. For example, if a knee surgery was improperly performed but you did not suffer an injury, there would likely be no case.
Medical malpractice claims are expensive to litigate and usually require extensive medical testimony and many hours of depositions. Unfortunately, if you had a small amount of damage, the cost of the case could outweigh the recovery. You need to show that the medical malpractice caused injuries, such as loss of income, disability, pain and suffering, and medical bills.
Any deviation from the standard of care can lead to medical malpractice, but some claims are more common than others. These are the most common categories of medical malpractice:
Many Americans are surprised to learn that medical mistakes are the #3-most common cause of death in the US. This means about 250,000 deaths per year are because of medical errors. Other sources claim the number may be as high as 450,000. However, most victims of a medical error never file a claim.
About 1/3 of all medical malpractice claims are estimated to involve delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis. An improper or late diagnosis can cause unnecessary treatments or delayed treatments. . Some common reasons for misdiagnosis occur when a doctor does not:
The doctor or facility also may mislabel test or lab results, lose test results, or make errors when doing a test. If a diagnosis is not provided promptly, injury or death may result.
Failure to treat is also a common reason for medical malpractice claims. Some examples are releasing you from the hospital too soon; not providing instructions for care at home; not ordering the proper tests, and not considering your medical history when ordering medications.
Some medical malpractice claims in this area are because medical professionals are simply overloaded with patients. Unfortunately, when clinicians are overwhelmed with work, treatment mistakes can happen.
Making mistakes with prescription drugs can cause minor or serious problems, including death. Some of the most frequent medication errors include:
Every operating room is staffed with several medical professionals to prevent harm to the patient. However, mistakes still happen in the operating room, including:
Injuries during childbirth can cause severe or fatal problems for the child, mother, or both. Common childbirth injuries may be caused by poor prenatal care; improper forceps use; not recognizing fetal distress, and mishandling the baby during or after birth.
If you did not receive sufficient prenatal medical care during pregnancy, this also may be the basis for a claim in some cases. For instance, if the physician did not tell you that your child will have a specific genetic issue, this could be considered improper medical practice.
A medical malpractice attorney needs to review your case to determine if the standard of care was unmet. However, the following signs could be red flags that medical malpractice may be a factor:
If you have any questions about the medical treatment you are receiving, always remember you can get a second opinion anytime. You also can talk to your medical malpractice attorney about the next steps.
If you were injured because of a doctor’s or medical facility’s mistake, you could be entitled to compensation in a medical malpractice lawsuit if the standard of care was violated. Contact our Milwaukee medical malpractice attorneys at Martin Law Office, S.C., at (414) 856-4010 for a consultation about your case.
