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Medical malpractice claims are made by a patient or the patient’s family when the individual injured in the claim has suffered an injury because of a doctor’s mistake. The medical malpractice claim can come in the form of a lawsuit, complaint, or statement against the doctor on the patient’s case, hospital staff, nurses, or even visiting doctors at the facility handling the patient’s care.
A Practical Definition of Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice claims can be applied to a doctor or hospital in charge of the care of a patient during any stage of care, such as with:
- Diagnosis
- Omission or error in diagnosis
- Treatment
- Aftercare
- Health management
- Discharge instructions
- Follow up care
- Patient care plans
- Missed diagnosis
- Second or third opinions of prior diagnosis
An error or omission of a diagnosis for a patient can include if the doctor missed a disease or condition that the patient presented to the healthcare staff, or if the doctor was not competent to determine or identify the patient’s issues and should have been experienced enough to know what was wrong. In some cases, there are grave results, whereby a patient is misdiagnosed, dies prematurely because the cancer was missed, etc., or if the patient is diagnosed incorrectly and is treated for the wrong type of illness. Doctors have very high premiums to pay for medical malpractice insurance for this reason. It just stands to reason – doctors are human and therefore fallible. Sometimes a doctor’s diagnosis is just wrong.
Medical Malpractice Awards Are Increasing Each Year
People expect to be awarded a high settlement in the millions for a medical malpractice claim because more and more of these high-level settlements have come down from the courts lately in medical malpractice cases. There may be practical reasons for increases in medical malpractice claims. First, baby boomer healthcare workers (doctors, nurses, etc.) are retiring in record numbers, leaving many healthcare facilities and hospitals severely understaffed. New nurses taking over are under-experienced and do not know how to manage care for many patients at once. All facilities related to healthcare are understaffed, healthcare workers are overworked, some have morale issues within their facility, and others have to deal with many patients who have mental health issues or family members who do not work favorably with the healthcare systems to get the best care for their loved one.
New Trends in Telehealth Options Pose New Challenges for Safety
In the pandemic, many healthcare providers can offer telehealth options for the care and treating of diseases and illnesses of the public. There will be an opportunity for medical malpractice in these forums if the healthcare workers using these forums do not know how to use them properly and safely and gather accurate medical information on the patient. Some healthcare facilities embraced using telehealth without properly training their staff or changing and overhauling their protocols for patient safety. This may have resulted in more medical malpractice cases coming up as exposure to liabilities on all sides has increased.
Settlement Negotiations in Medical Malpractice Cases
Before the medical malpractice case can be settled, there will need to be an investigation of the medical malpractice claim. What questions will be asked will be reviewed to determine the extent of the malpractice claim. This is to find any negligent acts made by the patient regarding any medical treatment received by the patient at the facility.
Some questions that will be asked could include:
- Was there a medical mistake made with the patient’s care?
- What was the nature of the medical mistake?
- When was the mistake noticed?
- Did the mistake result in any physical or emotional damage to the patient?
- How much is the patient claiming for a settlement?
- What is the patient’s condition now?
- Not for the mistake, what would the patient’s condition expected to have been?
- Has the patient been worse off after the misdiagnosis?
- Has the patient died as a result of the mistake?
- Has the medical mistake reduced the patient’s quality of life?
Medical malpractice claims can be complex. Often, there are mistakes made by the patient and the doctor regarding the patient’s care and care plan. For example, if the patient is told not to smoke again, has a procedure to remove cancer from the patient’s lung, and the patient smokes again, igniting the patient’s cancer anew, then there will be issues with this restarting to smoke, which will exacerbate the patient’s diagnosis and current situation. Also, patients who self-medicate, take herbal or holistic treatments unknown to the doctor or against the patient’s advice, etc., will all determine the patient’s outcomes, regardless of a medical malpractice mistake or error.
It is critical to talk to a medical malpractice attorney if you are in this situation or need expert representation for a loved one with this type of case. There is no one answer as to how to manage the settlement of a medical malpractice claim, because all of them are unique and hold a different set of facts on the merits for settlement. We are here to help you settle the medical malpractice claim you want to initiate against a negligent doctor or medical facility. This is one time that you don’t want to leave your outcome to chance.
Learn More About How Settlement Negotiations Work in a Medical Malpractice Case
When you are suffering from a severe injury that has come as the result of a situation regarding medical malpractice, give us a call at CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm. We are here for you and will help you get the recovery you deserve. Our injury and accident attorneys will provide you with peace of mind to know that your concerns are being heard, and we will get you the compensation that you should have as a result of being injured from the wrongful actions of other parties. So give us a call today at (833) 254-2923 right now.