Medical Malpractice

Whether you consult the Law Offices of Daniel J. Kelley or another firm: "Don’t sign anything before talking to an experienced medical malpractice attorney."

A 1999 report from the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine cites studies showing that the conservative estimate of people who die each year due to mistakes by medical professionals is between 44,000 and 98,000.  According to a more recent study of 37 million patient records that was released by HealthGrades, a healthcare quality company, an average of 195,000 people in the USA died due to potentially preventable, in-hospital medical errors in each of the years 2000, 2001 and 2002. 

WHAT IS MEDICAL MALPRACTICE? 

Medical Malpractice or Medical Negligence is when injury or death occurs as a direct result of the failure of a physician or other health care provider (hospital, nurse, obstetrician, nursing home, anesthesiologist, pharmacist, etc.) to properly treat a medical condition. Many situations result in medical malpractice or negligence cases and it is important to remember that not all medical situations that end badly are the cause of malpractice. Some examples of situations that may be construed to be medical malpractice: 

·        Misdiagnosis or Failure to Diagnosed Cancer;

·        Coma, Nerve Damage or Death due to Anesthesiological Mistakes;

·        Improper Administration of Prescription or Non-Prescription Drugs;

·        Improper Use of a Medical Device or Implant;

·        Surgical Procedures done without Patient Consent;

·        Failure to Order the Proper Tests;

·        Failure to Consult with a Specialists;

·        Failure to Properly Monitor a Patient;

·        Injury to Mother or Child during a VBAC (vaginal birth after C-section);

·        Birth Injury or Birth Trauma due to Obstetrical, Nursing, Hospital or Physician Malpractice;

·        Incorrect Treatment of a Diagnosed Illness;

·         Failure of Hospital Staff to Properly Interpret Doctors' Notes on Patient Charts, Resulting in Incorrect Administration of Medications or Treatments.

To prove a medical malpractice case, the injured party must be able to demonstrate that a doctor, or other health care provider, did not meet the established standard of care at some point during their medical treatment. The standard of care can be defined as how a prudent physician (or specified healthcare provider) would have managed a patient’s care under the same or similar circumstances. Establishing a failure to meet this standard is a critical aspect of a successful medical malpractice case.

If you believe that you or someone you know has been the victim of medical malpractice, it is critical that you contact a qualified attorney as soon possible.  A skilled medical malpractice lawyer will make sure that you receive all of the compensation to which you are entitled.