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What Is a Medical Malpractice Claim?

A medical malpractice lawsuit is brought by the patient who complains about the negligence of a healthcare worker. The patient, or or her estate in the case of a deceased patient, must show that the negligence caused injury or harm.

Lawsuits alleging medical malpractice are generally filed in state trial courts. To prevail in a lawsuit the aggrieved party has to demonstrate four legal elements:

Duty of care

In any legal case in any legal matter, the plaintiff must show that another person or entity had a legal obligation to care and then failed to fulfill this duty. In medical malpractice cases it is a doctor's obligation to provide their patients with the proper standards of medical care. Expert testimony is usually used to determine this.

Expert witnesses help to determine the appropriate medical standards. They then show how a doctor was not following the standards in their treatment of the patient. A plaintiff's medical malpractice attorney must then show that this error was directly accountable for the injury of the victim.

Expert testimony is essential for jurors, since the majority of jurors have only a basic understanding of anatomy and are exposed to many medical dramas. In medical malpractice claims it is crucial as it is often difficult to establish the appropriate standard of care. In a medical malpractice case, the standard of care is referred to the degree of skill as well as the quality of treatment and the level of diligence displayed by other doctors in comparable specialties in similar circumstances.

In general, experts in medical malpractice cases are surgeons or physicians with similar training and board certifications. Due to the "conspiracy of silence" between a variety of doctors (a term lawyers employ to describe the tendency of doctors to not admit to a case against one another) it can be challenging to find an expert who is qualified to testify against a colleague regarding the care that is not up to par.

Breach of duty

If a doctor commits an error that causes harm to the patient, this is considered medical malpractice. The mistakes could cause new injuries or make existing ones worse. Medical malpractice cases are a complex set of laws and issues, making them difficult to prove. However, a good medical malpractice lawyer will analyze the facts of your case to determine if a doctor has violated his or her obligation to the patient.

Your attorney will establish a doctor-patient connection between you and your physician, which is necessary for any malpractice claim. Your attorney will scrutinize your doctor's actions and decisions to determine if the standard of care in your state for doctors with similar backgrounds, training, and geographic location is met.

Physicians must follow the standards that are set by their patients without omission or deviation. A breach of duty means that the doctor failed to meet your expectations and this failure caused injury to you.

Proving the breach of duty is usually straightforward with the help of your attorney's research and expert witnesses. Experts can testify that the doctor's actions were not in accordance with the standard of medical treatment and explain why a different medical professional would have behaved differently in similar circumstances. Your lawyer must also be able to link the breach of duty to your injuries and damages. Your lawyer will review your medical records as well as test results, prescriptions and imaging scans in order to construct a convincing case that the breach of duty committed by your physician directly led to your injuries.

Causation

Medical errors can increase the dangers of many treatments. To prove causation, the patient must demonstrate that there is a direct link between the alleged negligence of a doctor and their injury. In many instances this will require expert testimony and the assistance of a medical malpractice lawyer.

Medical errors could include mistakes in diagnosis, for instance, misdiagnosing serious diseases or conditions. If doctors fail to detect cancer or another illness this could have serious consequences for the patient. In this scenario the patient could suffer unnecessary suffering and even death. The doctor could be negligent for not diagnosing the problem properly.

Proving that a medical professional or hospital did not treat you properly isn't easy and takes a lot of time. The evidence needed could include numerous sources, such as medical malpractice law firm records and test results, as and expert witness testimony and oral depositions. Your lawyer can help you in obtaining and interpreting this evidence, as well being your advocate during the process of depositions.

It is also important to remember that only a healthcare professional is liable for misconduct. Nurses and doctors, as opposed to receptionists in medical centers, are expected to follow the current standards of treatment. A medical professional should be able to predict consequences based on his or their education and experience.

Damages

In medical malpractice law firm malpractice claims the courts consider monetary damages to compensate the injured patient. These damages can include the cost of medical bills in the past or in the future and lost wages, pain and discomfort, disfigurement or loss of enjoyment of living. In certain cases the punitive damages may be awarded; these are reserved for the most egregious actions that society is interested in deterring.

A medical malpractice claim typically begins with the filing a civil summons and complaint in court. Then, the parties will engage in discovery, a procedure in which the plaintiff and defendants are required to make disclosures under the oath. This may include the exchange of documents like medical records, taking depositions from those involved in the lawsuit and conducting interviews with witnesses.

One of the first things to prove in a medical malpractice case is that the physician had the legal obligation to provide medical treatment and care to the patient. The other element to prove is that the doctor did not fulfill that duty by failing to adhere to the medical standard of care. The third element is that the breach caused injury to the patient.

It is important to know that the statutes of limitations (the legally-required time frame within which an action for medical malpractice has to be filed) vary from state state. In New York, the statute of limitations is two years and six months (30 months) from the date on when the underlying incident of medical malpractice occurred.