Saturday, November 7, 2009

Malpractice List - The More Common Situations of Medical Negligence

Medical malpractice is considered an "epidemic" in the United States.  Malpractice is responsible for hundreds of injuries every year.  Although malpractice is on the rise, most Americans do not know how to identify medical malpractice.  Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional breaches their duty and an injury results because of it.

The malpractice list below explains the more common situations of medical negligence.  If one of these mistakes happened to you, speak with a lawyer right away.

Common mistakes are:

Obstetric error - The birthing process for a mother and a child is a vulnerable time and it is imperative that doctors and staff take extra care to guarantee the patients safety through the delivery process.  Failing to ensure their safety can result in an injury and permanent damage.  Lack of oxygen to the baby, infections not treated in a timely manner, not responding to fetal distress promptly can cause damage to the brain and cerebral palsy. 

Surgical error - Errors during surgery is another common type of malpractice.  Errors of this nature have cause serious damage and even death.  Some common surgery errors are removing the wrong body part on the patient or leaving a medical instrument or supplies inside the patient after the surgery is done.

Medication mistake - This mistake happens more frequently than others do.  Medication errors are responsible for hundred of thousand of injuries in the U.S.  Mistakes such as giving the wrong dosage to a patient or giving the wrong medication can cause severe injuries or death especially to children and elderly.

Diagnostic error - This error is unfortunate.  Doctors have diagnosed a patient with having an illness they did not have or a patient has an illness that the doctor never diagnosed.  Doctors should listen carefully to their patients, their symptoms and history in order to diagnose them accurately.  Serious illnesses such as cancer or heart attacks have been overlooked because of this.     

Medical malpractice can take many forms the above examples are just a few mentioned.  Malpractice is not done only by doctors; other medical professionals are also capable of being negligent. 

A patient should seek legal advice right away if they had suffered an injury because of medical malpractice.  Medical lawyers will evaluate your case to determine if malpractice is to blame.  Compensation can be awarded to individuals of medical neglect.

Injured by Medical Malpractice?

Contact a medical lawyer right away, if you have an injury that you think could have been caused by a mistake mentioned in the malpractice list above.  It is important to know that the examples in the malpractice list are not the only mistakes that happen.  If you have any questions regarding an injury sustained during a medical procedure, a lawyer will assess your case for free.  They have your best interest in mind; they will give you legal advice and go over your legal options.  They know these kinds of cases and they will represent you and protect your right.




David Austin is an Attorney focused on complex injury cases. You can learn more about Malpractice List at his website. Burke-Eisner.com

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