5 Laws That Will Help The Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Industry

Making Medical Malpractice Legal

Medical malpractice is a highly specialized legal issue. Physicians must take steps to safeguard themselves against risk by purchasing adequate medical malpractice insurance.

Patients must prove that the physician's failure to fulfill duty caused harm to them. Damages are determined by the actual economic loss such as lost income or the costs of any future medical procedures, in addition to non-economic losses like pain and suffering.

Duty of care

The first thing a medical malpractice attorney needs to establish in an instance is the duty of care. All healthcare professionals have the obligation of acting in accordance with the prevailing standard of care applicable to their specific field. This includes nurses, doctors, and other medical professionals. This includes medical students, interns and assistants under the supervision of a doctor or medical malpractice attorney physician.

A medical expert witness establishes the standard of care in court. They look over medical records to determine what a reputable physician in the same field would have done under similar circumstances.

If the healthcare professional's actions or lack of action fell below the standard, they breached their duty of care and caused injury. The injured patient has to prove that the breach of duty by the healthcare professional directly caused their loss. This can include scarring, pain and other injuries. This could include medical expenses, lost wages and other financial losses.

If a surgeon has left an instrument used for surgery inside the patient after surgery, it could cause discomfort or other issues which could result in damage. A medical malpractice attorney can establish through the testimony of an expert medical doctor that the surgical team's negligence led to these damages. This is known as direct causation. The patient is also required to provide proof of their injuries.

Breach of duty

A malpractice claim may be filed when medical malpractice lawsuit professionals breach the accepted standards of practice and causes injury to a patient. The person who was injured must prove that the physician breached their duty of care by offering substandard treatment. In other words, the doctor acted negligently and this caused the patient to suffer damage.

To prove that the physician breached their duty to care, a knowledgeable attorney has to present expert evidence to prove that the defendant did not have or exercise the level of knowledge and skill required by doctors in their field of expertise. The plaintiff must also demonstrate that there is a direct connection between the alleged negligence and the resulting injuries. This is called causation.

Additionally, the injured plaintiff must show that they would not have chosen the path of treatment if they had been properly informed. This is also referred to as the principle of informed consent. Physicians are required to inform their patients about any possible risks or complications that might arise from a certain procedure prior to undergoing surgery or putting the patient under anesthesia.

The statute of limitations is a period of time that must be met by the patient who was injured to make a claim for medical malpractice. Whatever the severity of the mistake of the health care provider or how badly the patient was injured, a court will almost always dismiss any claim filed after the statute of limitations has expired. Some states have laws that require the plaintiffs in a medical malpractice suit to engage in voluntary binding arbitration or submit their claims to a screening panel prior to going to trial.

Causation

Both the lawyers and the physicians who are involved in the litigation need to invest a significant amount of time and effort to prove medical malpractice. The process of proving that a doctor's treatment departed from the accepted standard requires extensive review of records, interviews with witnesses, and a thorough analysis of medical literature. A law requires that lawsuits be filed within the deadline set by the court. Generally, this deadline--called the statute of limitations -- begins to run when a mistake in health care occurred or when the patient realized (or should have known under the terms of the law) that they were harmed by a mistake made by a doctor.

Proving causation is one the four essential elements of medical malpractice claims and probably the most difficult one to prove. A lawyer must show that a physician's breach of the duty of care resulted in injury to a patient, and that the injuries would not have happened but for the physician’s negligence. This is known as proximate or actual cause. The legal threshold for proof of this element differs from that used in criminal cases, where proof must be beyond reasonable doubt.

If an attorney can demonstrate these three elements the person who was harmed could be entitled to monetary compensation. These damages are designed to compensate the victim's injuries and loss of quality of life and other damages.

Damages

Medical malpractice cases can be complex and require expert testimony. The plaintiff's lawyer must prove that a doctor did not adhere to the standards of medical treatment and that the failure led to injuries and that the injury resulted from damages. The plaintiff must also prove that the injury can be quantified in terms of financial value.

Medical negligence lawsuits can be among the most complex and costly legal actions. To cut down on the high cost of litigation, a number of states have implemented tort reform measures which aim to increase efficiency, reduce frivolous claims, and compensate injured parties fairly. These measures include limiting the amount plaintiffs can receive for pain and suffering, and limiting the number defendants who are responsible for paying an award and requiring mediation or arbitration.

In addition, a lot of malpractice claims are highly technical issues that are difficult for judges and juries to understand. This is why experts are so important in these cases. For instance the case where a surgeon has made an error during a procedure the patient's lawyer needs to hire an orthopedic expert to explain the reason for the mistake could not have occurred had the surgeon performed the surgery in accordance with the applicable medical standards of care.