Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Lawyer

A medical malpractice lawyer helps injured patients receive compensation for their losses. The legal system that governs medical malpractice cases is founded on common law.

In the common law, doctors are required to adhere to a standard of care in treating their patients. If a doctor does not adhere to accepted medical procedures and causes injury or death, they could be held accountable for negligence.

Duty of Care

Medical professionals must follow a set of standards that are accepted by the medical profession as reasonable and prudent when they provide care. Patients may be able to file a lawsuit against a medical professional if those standards aren't being met and the failure results in injury or health complications.

The first step in a case of malpractice is to prove that you were a patient of the healthcare provider and that they had a duty to act in a fair manner. Then, you need to prove that a breach of that duty occurred. This is usually done expert testimony that can provide a objective analysis and evaluation.

The expert witness will help determine if the defendant's actions were less than the accepted standard in your particular case. The expert will examine your medical records and also interview or question you to make this decision.

You also need to establish that the breach of duty directly led you to suffer injuries. Causation is the third factor in a malpractice lawsuit. In most cases, you'll require a direct cause and effect relationship between the breach of duty and the resulting injury. For instance, a misdiagnosis could result in the wrong medication or treatment being administered and that can result in an adverse reaction like a heart attack.

Breach of Duty

As with all other professionals medical professionals, doctors are under a legal obligation to exercise care and prudence. However doctors are held to an even more stringent standard because they are considered experts in medicine and have to make life and death decisions. The duty of care is outlined in the laws and standards that apply to certain kinds of treatments and procedures.

In a case of negligence, it is vital to prove that the defendant owed a duty to care for the plaintiff. Then, it must be proven that the defendant did not fulfill that duty of care. This means that the doctor did not live up to the standard of care applicable to the situation. The quality of care is usually determined by what a reasonable person would do in similar circumstances. A reasonable driver, for example will not go through the traffic light.

In a malpractice case, expert witnesses may be required to testify regarding the standard of care that was breached and how the standard was violated. They can also provide a detailed explanation of the reason for the injury and what could have been done to prevent it from happening.

Damages

Physicians in the United States are required to have malpractice insurance to protect their potential losses arising from medical negligence. To file a claim, the plaintiff must show both financial losses (such medical expenses and lost wages), as well as non-economic losses (such pain and suffering).

The amount you receive from a successful malpractice suit depends on how well your New York medical malpractice attorney argues for your losses. Your attorney will be able to determine your medically required expenses by examining your medical records, the testimony of experts and the use of economic experts. Your medical malpractice attorney must prove that you lost your earnings by proving the amount of days you have missed working due to medical malpractice lawyer conditions, and also that these days were a result of the defendant’s negligence.

Non-economic damages can be difficult to prove. You may require assistance from a professional witness who can provide details of your physical, mental and emotional suffering as an direct result of defendant's negligence. Other forms of non-economic damages include loss of consortium, which is an inability to maintain a romantic and sexual relationship as you once could with your spouse or your significant other. The lawyer representing the defendant may challenge your non-economic damages in the form of interrogatories, depositions, along with requests for Medical malpractice documents and sworn statements.

Statute of limitations

In New York, as with every state, there are definite time frames - also known as statutes or limitations within which a medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed, or otherwise it could be dismissed by the courts. A New York medical malpractice attorney who has experience is well-versed in the nuances of these deadlines, and will ensure that your claim is filed before the deadlines set by law.

In most cases, the victim of medical negligence is required to be able to file a lawsuit within two and a half years from the date the act or omission committed by the health professional caused death or injury. Like all laws, this rule has its exceptions. If, for instance the error made by the health care provider was part of a continuing course of treatment, the "clock" of 30 months won't start until the treatment has been completed or the patient is informed of the diagnosis.

In some cases patients may not discover the problem until a considerable time later, for example, if a foreign body remains in the body following surgery or treatment. In this regard, medical malpractice a majority of states have enacted a legal concept called the discovery rule, which allows injured victims to extend deadlines in certain instances. Your attorney will know the specific rules in your state, and will carefully look over your case's timeline in order to avoid administrative errors that can derail your claim.