What is Medical Malpractice?

Medical malpractice occurs when a hospital, doctor or other health care professional causes an injury to a patient because of their negligence. The negligence might be the result of errors in diagnosis, treatment, aftercare or health management.

A case of medical malpractice takes place when:

There is a violation of the standard of care:  The law acknowledges certain medical standards that are regarded as acceptable medical treatment by reasonably prudent health care professionals under like or similar circumstances. This is known as the standard of care. Medical professionals are expected to deliver this standard of care, failing to do which is regarded as negligence.

An injury is caused by negligence: For a medical malpractice claim to be valid, a patient must prove he or she sustained an injury as a result of a medical professional ‘s negligence.

The injury results in significant damages: To prove medical malpractice, a patient must show significant damages resulted from an injury received due to the alleged medical negligence. If the damages are small, the cost of pursuing the case might be greater than the eventual recovery. 

Medical malpractice can take many forms. Here are some examples of medical negligence that might lead to a lawsuit:

·         Failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis

·         Misreading or ignoring laboratory results

·         Unnecessary surgery

·         Surgical errors or wrong site surgery

·         Improper medication or dosage

·         Poor follow-up or aftercare

·         Premature discharge

·         Disregarding or not taking appropriate patient history

·         Failure to order proper testing

·         Failure to recognize symptoms