When you go to see your doctors, you expect a few things: quality care, honesty, and treatment that helps you get better. What you don’t expect, though, is to encounter medical malpractice. Unfortunately, that’s precisely what many people run into.
According to the Civil Justice Resource Group, about 65,000 to 200,000 people die each year as a result of medical accidents. If you think you’ve been a victim of medical malpractice, knowing where to turn can be difficult. Fortunately, you’re not alone. Here’s what you should understand about coping with wrongful death, medical malpractice, and medical mistakes.
What is Medical Malpractice?
Here’s how Nolo defines medical malpractice:
“Medical malpractice cases arise when a patient is harmed by a doctor or nurse (or other medical professionals) who fails to provide proper health care treatment. Fortunately, doctors, nurses, and hospitals make mistakes in a small number of cases. But within that small minority of cases, certain types of errors crop up more often than others. Read on to learn about the doctor and hospital mistakes that make up the bulk of medical malpractice lawsuits.”
One significant element to remember is that not all doctor errors or bad outcomes are inherently malpractice. The legal definition of medical malpractice requires negligence. This means that a doctor or healthcare provider did something unreasonable or failed to do something that a reasonable provider would have done
3 Truths About Medical Malpractice
If you suspect you’ve been impacted by medical malpractice, here are a few things to know:
1. Negligent Doctors are Often Repeat Offenders
A small number of doctors generate most medical malpractice claims. According to a new study, about 2% of doctors throughout the U.S. are responsible for about 39% of all medical malpractice claims. These repeat offenders are common in part because the healthcare system does not have an effective method to identify and correct doctors who commit malpractice.
As a result, the majority of healthcare providers with five or more paid malpractice claims continue to practice. In fact, they often go on to establish private offices, where there is less oversight than in a hospital or clinic setting.
2. Many Medical Malpractice Claims Result From Diagnosis Errors by Your Doctors
According to a report published by malpractice services provider Coverys, “33% of malpractice claims are related to errors made during a patient’s diagnosis. Of these claims, more than half involved poor clinical decisions.”
Procedural and surgical claims are the second most common type (24%) of malpractice claims. Medical management issues, meanwhile, make up 14% of claims. Medical misdiagnosis events range from inconvenient to fatal and are often grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit.
3. You’ll Need to Hire Medical Malpractice Lawyers
Because you have to prove negligence, navigating medical malpractice is complicated. That said, it’s wise to hire a team of wrongful death & medical malpractice attorneys in Pensacola, Florida to assist in your case. These attorneys can help you understand malpractice law as it relates to unfortunate situations like death, disability, or the need for extended rehabilitation.
The healthcare system has many built-in protections to shield people who commit medical malpractice. As such, it is important to hire attorneys experienced in Medical Malpractice Litigation. Ward & Barnes, P.A is here to help you.
Contact us today to schedule your first consult.