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Common Causes of Malpractice Litigation

Malpractice litigation involves a complex process. The question of whether or not an error is malpractice based on whether the patient is able to establish four legal elements such as a professional duty and breach of this duty; injury caused by the breach and the possibility of quantifiable damages.

Plaintiffs must also prove the elements by using evidence such as expert testimony and depositions.

Incorrect diagnosis or failure to diagnose

Failure to correctly diagnose an injury or illness accurately can result in serious complications, or death. It is a typical cause of medical negligence. To show negligence, the patient or their lawyer needs to prove that a seasoned doctor in similar circumstances would not have misdiagnosed a condition.

The misdiagnosis of a patient does not always mean malpractice. Even highly trained and malpractice litigation experienced doctors make mistakes, and the claim of malpractice law must be supported by other factors such as breach, proximate causation, and actual injury. If a doctor fails to sterilize his equipment before administering anesthesia, and the patient becomes infected as a result of this, the doctor may be liable.

In the majority of cases, lawsuits that allege malpractice will be filed in the state trial court where the alleged misconduct occurred. Federal courts could be able to hear cases in certain circumstances. A claim can be brought before federal court in certain circumstances. For instance it could involve disputes over a statute of limitation or when the parties have different citizenships. Alternatively, some claims are resolved through binding arbitration that is voluntary. This is a non-formal procedure that involves professional decision makers. It is designed to lower expenses, speed up the legal proceedings, and eliminate the risk of overly generous juries. Arbitration is not always available in cases of malpractice.

Dosage for a drug that is not correct

Medication errors, also known as medication mistakes, are one of the most common causes of medical malpractice law lawsuits. These errors can be caused by a doctor writing prescriptions in a wrong format or giving the patient the wrong dosage. These mistakes are usually preventable. Based on the circumstances the pharmacy, hospital or other health care provider could be held responsible for malpractice litigation injuries caused by an individual who took the wrong dosage of a medication.

A doctor may prescribe the incorrect medication to a patient as a result of an incorrect diagnosis or simply due to a misreading of the prescription. A health care provider may also administer the wrong dosage due to an issue with communication like when the nurse reads the doctor's handwritten script in error or the pharmacist commits an error in filling out the prescription. In other cases, the physician may delay the proper medication, which could result in the patient's health getting worse.

A plaintiff must prove for the sake of winning a malpractice lawsuit that the medical professional violated their standard of practice and that their injuries were directly attributed to the negligence. This requires medical expert testimony. A medical malpractice case must prove the extent and damages of the victim's injuries. This includes the cost of treatment and any wage loss. Generally, the greater a loss is then, the more valuable the claim will be.

Unskillful Procedure

This type of incident is not uncommon. It might seem unattainable for medical professionals to carry out the wrong procedure on patients but it does happen. A surgeon who commits this mistake could be held accountable for malpractice. A patient who is injured as a result of an error in surgery could be held accountable for any negligence that occurred during the procedure.

Any health care professional who is accused of malpractice must show that the patient was hurt through a specific act or inaction. To establish this the legal counsel of the patient must show that: (1) the doctor was bound by an obligation to provide treatment or treatment; (2) that the doctor violated that duty; (3) that there is a direct causal connection between the breach and the injury and (4) that the injury results in damages which the legal system has the power to be able to address.

A breach of duty of care is no significance unless it results in injury. This is why medical malpractice law cases are often founded on the legal doctrine "res ipsa locquitur," which says that certain injuries are so obvious that they can only be explained through negligence.

Based on the facts the plaintiff (the person who filed the claim or their legal representative) or their lawyer could decide to file the claim in state or federal court. The majority of malpractice case cases are filed with state courts, but in certain situations the case of medical negligence could be filed with a federal district court.

Wrong Surgery

A wrong-site procedure is a rare error, but it can be considered medical negligence if the procedure is performed on the wrong area of the body. This type of mistake is usually caused by miscommunications between the surgical team, or due to pressures in the production process that result in surgeons having several surgeries to perform at the same time. In these situations the surgeon isn't all-in on his liability for a wrong-site surgery because there is an underlying legal principle referred to as "res ipsa loquitur" which means that the result of the error speaks for itself and cannot be traced to negligence.

If the patient is injured during a wrong-site procedure, he or her may need additional procedures to correct problems that were made worse due to the error. Patients and their families are left with high medical bills. These expenses must be taken into consideration when calculating the financial impact of medical malpractice claims.

The majority of times surgeons are liable for surgical errors. They are accountable for preparing the patient for the procedure, as well as checking the medical records and charts of the patient, coordinating with the rest of the medical staff, and making sure that the incision was made at the right place. In some instances hospitals or anesthesiologists may also be held responsible. Medical malpractice claims are usually filed in state courts, however, in certain situations, they can be transferred to federal courts.