Medical malpractice is thankfully something which doesn’t happen all of the time, yet there are still many cases which we have each year. When media malpractice is suspected, patients will visit professionals like Dr. Bruce G. Fagel to identify whether there has been wrongdoing. Within medical malpractice there are some errors and issues which are more common than others, and these are the most commonly found errors that are made.
Surgical Mistakes
Mistakes in surgery is the most common issue for medical malpractice, and this is often as a result of poor processes or communication. For example we see issues like wrong body-site surgery, wrong patient surgery, wrong procedures carried out, damage to nerves and organs and even leaving instruments or surgical equipment inside the body. This makes up the large majority of medical malpractice claims which we see.
Misdiagnosis
It is important that we understand that misdiagnosis is not always grounds for medical malpractice claim. With this being said if a medical professional has failed to recognize clear symptoms, if they have misinterpreted lab tests or failed to order them in the first place or if a patient’s medical history has been ignored, then this could certainly constitute as medical malpractice. This is one particular case however which is highly difficult to prove from a legal standpoint.
Medication Errors
In some instances giving someone the wrong prescription for medication may not result in any problems at all. In other situations however it is possible that the wrong drugs can be given which can cause great damage to the patient if they are not for them. This could be dispensing the wrong medication, prescribing an incorrect dosage or an error on the part of the pharmacist in giving the medication out.
Infections in Hospital
Another common claim which we see from patients is that they have become infected with something during their time in hospital for another issue. This could be anything from infections at the site of the surgery to urinary tract infections or even pneumonia. If it can be proven that the infection happened as a result of poor practices by the hospital then this is certainly a case for medical malpractice.
Ultimately any claim which you make against the hospital or against a medical professional must be able to show that an incident has occurred because of negligence. This has to be proven completely in order for a case to go forward and in many instances this is something which is very challenging to do. This is not to say that the hospital and its staff have to get things right every time, this simply isn’t possible because of the limitations in our knowledge about the human body. What hospitals should be doing however is proving that all steps have been taken with a patient which protects their health to the best of their ability and which falls in line with hospital guidelines and specifics which are laid out.
