Insights About Suing Your Doctor For Medical Negligence
You’ve probably heard horror stories of medical negligence about surgeons accidentally amputating the wrong leg, or removing a non-cancerous organ, but what you may not know is that a medical negligence/malpractice may be brought against doctors who simply provide less than acceptable care. This can mean not providing a thorough enough check-up, giving a prescription for the wrong dose of medication, etc. Below you’ll find some tips about using your physician for negligent care.
Types of Medical Negligence By Doctors
Failure to Behave According To a Reasonable Standard of Care
When the court decides whether your doctor committed medical malpractice, they will weigh his/her behavior against how a reasonably competent doctor would have acted. A poor medical result is not necessarily always medical malpractice unless your doctor breached this duty to be reasonably competent.
Misdiagnosis
If a reasonably competent doctor would have diagnosed you correctly, then the failure of your doctor to make the right diagnosis can be a form of medical malpractice. If the misdiagnosis physically injured you, you may be able to obtain compensation through a lawsuit.
Failure To Obtain Informed Consent
When you undergo a procedure or operation your doctor is required to obtain informed consent. However, the consent must be truly informed, meaning that all the details of the procedure, any potential risks or side effects, and other options, were presented to you. If your doctor didn’t obtain informed consent, you may be entitled to damages.
Things You Can Do
Get Many Different Opinions
Unfortunately, medicine can sometimes be subjective. What one doctor might recommend, others will say otherwise. Ask several other doctors if your doctor’s actions were appropriate. If these physicians believe your doctor acted improperly, this can definitely help you win your case.
Keep Good Records
Make sure you keep careful records of everything your doctor told you, and of any side effects or problems you experienced. Also, keep records of any money you spent or lost as a result of the mistake. If you are suing for pain and suffering damages as well, you should also keep a detailed written record of the suffering you had to go through.
Prove That The Damage Came From Negligent Care
If your doctor didn’t diagnose your heart condition and then you had a heart attack, you can only recover damages in court that wouldn’t have happened had the doctor acted properly. If you can’t prove that your damages would have been less had the doctor behaved properly, you may have a difficult time recovering.
You May Settle Your Case Out of Court
Doctors all have medical malpractice insurance, and those insurance carriers will likely be paying for their mistakes. Much of the time, the insurance companies will make an offer of a lump sum payment as a settlement. If you choose to accept the payment, you know just how much you are going to recover in damages. The downside is that you must surrender your right to sue.
If you feel as though your doctor has provided you with less than acceptable care, you may be entitled to money for their medical negligence. Don’t hesitate to contact Bruce A. Hagen, we’re a GA accident attorney that will win your case. We are top-of-the-line accident attorneys of Atlanta. Contact us now!