Have you been a victim of medical malpractice? It’s a term that stands for the professional misconduct of not only doctors but nurses, therapists, dentists, technicians, and other healthcare professionals. – Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Malpractice cases in medicine arise from birth traumas, anesthesia errors, misdiagnoses, delayed diagnoses, surgical errors, improper treatment, etc. If you believe that you have suffered or been injured because of medical negligence, then you must schedule a consultation with a malpractice lawyer.
There are certain elements that your case must have to move forward, including the duty element, a violation of the standard of care, causation, and proof of actual damage.
Individuals should hire such a lawyer in the following cases.
Table of Contents
Misdiagnosis or a delayed diagnosis
Hiring a medical malpractice lawyer should be done in cases of misdiagnosis or a delayed diagnosis. The latter can be fatal due to the lack of time to provide the proper treatment. The former usually leads to administering a wrong treatment to patients, which causes therapy delays or life-altering issues. Both situations could have been avoided if the doctor or another healthcare professional hadn’t been careless. This article explains how common missed diagnosis or misdiagnosis is.
The most frequent medical misdiagnosed issues are associated with cancer, infection issues, and cardiovascular issues. The misdiagnosis of these medical conditions has the potential to cause serious harm to patients. When facing a misdiagnosis or a delayed diagnosis, patients are encouraged to contact a medical malpractice lawyer right away. While the insurance company will do its best to reduce your claim, your attorney will go out of his/her way to boost its value.
Improper treatment
Another situation where individuals should hire a medical malpractice lawyer is when being subjected to improper treatment. Incorrect therapy is believed to cause greater harm than administering no treatment at all. In many scenarios, the administration of wrong medications results in extended hospital admission.
Patients are strongly advised to file a medical malpractice claim when an incorrect treatment causes new health problems or worsens their existing ones. Then, they will be eligible to receive compensation for their injuries, pain and suffering, and unplanned medical expenditures. A malpractice lawyer will fight for your rights and provide you with fair compensation.
Different second opinion
When patients aren’t exactly satisfied with the provided treatment, they usually request a second opinion. Even if you have been seeing your physician for years, it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t consult another doctor to get a second opinion. Such an action is likely to minimize the likelihood of misdiagnosis. Also, patients might avoid therapies that are either unnecessary or harmful.
Individuals should consult a malpractice lawyer if the second option is contrary to the first one. Any difference in diagnoses and treatment recommendations shows that one of the doctors isn’t doing their job the right way. Visit this website https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/how-to-ask-for-second-opinion, to see how to ask for a second opinion.
Negligence during childbirth
Another scenario where hiring a medical malpractice lawyer is a must is after experiencing negligence during childbirth. The carelessness of doctors or midwives in the course of childbirth has often resulted in birth injuries. These injuries are unquestionably considered the most catastrophic, as newborns might be permanently disabled, while mothers may become emotionally traumatized by the experience.
Negligent medical practitioners may cause mental impairment or paralysis in newborns. Sometimes, the consequences are fatal. Even when pregnancies are considered normal, birth problems are still likely to occur. Injuries that occur during birth can be of permanent or transitory nature. Permanent ones refer to Erb’s palsy, brain damage, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, and kernicterus.
Temporary birth injuries, on the other hand, include collarbone fractures, facial paralysis, bruises, broken blood vessels in the area of the eyes, etc. These are fortunately healed quickly. In contrast, permanent ones usually require round-the-clock care and therapy for the rest of the newborn’s life. In such unfortunate scenarios, the victim definitely needs a malpractice lawyer to determine the settlement amount.
In addition, the settlement amount depends on whether the harm is permanent or temporary. It’s paramount to hire a malpractice lawyer the soonest as possible. The insurance company will probably try to undervalue your claim, but the role of your attorney is to prevent their efforts.
The doctor pays no attention to your concerns
Another unmistakable sign that patients should hire a malpractice lawyer is when the doctor ignores their concerns. During medical treatment, there should be an interaction between the patient and healthcare professionals. The responsibility of patients is to inform their doctors about the symptoms they are having. Afterward, the doctor should ask questions to diagnose their problems and prescribe the right treatment.
Nevertheless, some healthcare professionals refuse to respond to the questions of patients regarding their diagnoses. Patients are allowed to complain if the therapy doesn’t seem to work, or it makes them feel worse than before. If your doctor ignores your concerns and complaints, it’s high time to hire a malpractice lawyer.
Issues with insurers
Hiring malpractice legal assistance is recommended when having issues with insurers. Insurance companies have a habit of stonewalling individuals who file claims without legal backup. Attorneys, however, negotiate with the insurers in the name of their clients. They aren’t threatened by the actions of these companies, as their ultimate goal is to provide the highest compensation. Insurers are more willing to settle with plaintiffs when they have hired a lawyer.
Paperwork troubles
Individuals who decide to act solo soon realize that medical malpractice claims are challenging to file. Plenty of paperwork has to be filled out, which is often overwhelming for plaintiffs. Legal jargon is usually confusing and frustrating for individuals. Consequently, they get confused by the exact role of each document.
Instead of proceeding with the process by yourself, you should communicate with an attorney and ask him/her to take over the procedure. You’ll be walked through the process by having each step explained in detail.
Final word
Make an informed decision before taking any further steps!
