Guide: What to Do If You’re a Victim of Medical Misdiagnosis
Chapter 1: What to Do If You’re a Victim of Medical Misdiagnosis
Chapter 2: What to do if You Were Released from the Hospital Too Soon
Chapter 3: How can a Delay in Treatments Affect a Person Medically?
Chapter 4: What is Medical Misdiagnosis?
Chapter 5: Examples of Medical Misdiagnosis
Chapter 6: What is Medical Negligence?
Chapter 1: What to Do If You’re a Victim of Medical Misdiagnosis
When you see a doctor, you trust them to examine you and correctly diagnose any health issues. However, this is not always the case. About 12 million adults who visit the doctor get a misdiagnosis each year. Many instances of misdiagnosis result in adverse health effects and some death.
What Next?
If you or a loved one is a victim of a medical diagnosis, it is essential to know your legal rights. You can sue a negligent doctor for compensation after a misdiagnosis. Hiring a personal injury attorney with experience handling medical malpractice cases is always best.
Steps
Follow the steps below to maximize your chances of a successful outcome on your medical malpractice case.
Talk to Your Doctor
There are various causes of diagnostic errors. Talking with your physician helps you establish the reason for the misdiagnosis. It also helps determine whether you can resolve the issue.
Hire a Personal Injury Attorney
After other doctors confirm your misdiagnosis, it’s time to take legal action. At Robert J. DeBry & Associates, we help victims of medical misdiagnosis get the justice they deserve. We help you gather enough evidence to build a case against your doctor and represent you in court.
It is hard to look at things objectively during a court battle. That is why you need us to represent you. We take over all correspondence with the responsible party, so you don’t have to handle the case as you take time to recover.
Lawyers Help You Build a Solid Case
When building a medical malpractice case, you must prove that the doctor was at fault. Our injury attorney helps you gather medical records to verify your claim and investigates the doctor. We also find credible witnesses who can back your claim.
Medical malpractice cases are complex, and dealing with them while sick may further affect you.
It’s best to let an expert defend your rights. If you are in Utah, the personal injury attorneys at Robert J. DeBry & Associates would love to help. Contact us today for legal representation in your medical malpractice case.
Chapter 2: What to do if You Were Released from the Hospital Too Soon
The doctors may recommend admission for medication when they feel you need close attention. However, they can discharge you soon before realizing it, especially when you are not well enough.
Sometimes, you may not be prepared to leave because you do not have someone to nurse you at home. The impromptu discharge can be confusing, especially when you do not know whom to call when helpless.
What To Do
You need a personal injury attorney to guide you on reporting the facility that released you from the hospital soon. Robert J. DeBry & Associates offers personal injury advice and support on injuries you sustain due to malpractice or negligence.
A Guide for Safe Hospital Discharge
It is essential to ensure the doctor and nurses address the following issues before leaving the hospital;
Medication
Understanding how to administer the medicine, how often, and how long is essential. Also,
The nurse should explain what medication you should take before leaving the hospital.
Nevertheless, you can seek legal advice from a personal injury attorney if you receive a discharge letter without instruction on medicine use.
Caregiving Needs
The hospital should give you a list of caregivers who will take care of you once you leave the hospital.
If the hospital does not give the information, you can approach a personal injury attorney for help on how to find someone to assist you.
Bedside Education
The hospital should educate you on taking care of yourself after leaving the facility. The doctor should give you a list of people to contact if you need urgent assistance.
Chapter 3: How can a Delay in Treatments Affect a Person Medically?
A patient should always receive appropriate care in the timeliest manner feasible, as failing to swiftly treat an ailment might result in the worsening of the disease. However, as per a survey by the Institute of Medicine, the majority of Americans will receive a delayed diagnosis or treatment at least once in their lives, which corresponds to nearly 12 million incidents per year.
While most of these incidents do not result in substantial injury, other instances can result in serious damage or repercussions, such as a permanent handicap or even death.
If you or a loved one has had a delay in treatment or diagnosis, you may be able to receive compensation by filing a lawsuit through a personal injury attorney. However, it is vital to be informed of what counts as a delay in treatment and what actions must be performed in order to properly file a lawsuit. That is why our experts at Robert J. DeBry & Associates are here to offer you all the information necessary to appropriately deal with this situation.
Defining Delay in Treatment
A delay in treatment is characterized by the failure of a patient to obtain medical treatment, whether it be medicine, physical therapy, lab tests, or any other type of treatment, within a reasonable amount of time after it should have been administered. This includes not receiving an initial or subsequent appointment in a timely way.
Was the Delay the Result of Negligence?
To win a case, a plaintiff, through their personal injury attorney, must demonstrate that the doctor’s delay in giving treatment was the consequence of medical negligence.
Medical negligence arises when any type of healthcare professional fails to fulfill certain basic standards of care when treating a patient. Typically, proving medical negligence involves the testimony of a medical expert witness. The witness must indicate how a patient should have been cared for in the specific scenario at hand and explain how the accused physician deviated from this standard.
Did Any Harm Result from the Delay in Treatment?
If medical negligence has been shown, the next step taken by our expert personal injury attorneys at Robert J. DeBry & Associates is to determine medical malpractice damages.
To put it another way, a successful case must show that the doctor not only delayed treatment but that the delay caused harm or extra injury to the patient.
A medical expert is normally required to establish that extra harm occurred as a result of the delayed treatment. The medical expert must explain how the victim was harmed as a result of the delay in treatment, as well as the extent of the harm.
Without the assistance of a competent attorney, pursuing a medical negligence lawsuit is a complex and challenging procedure. Don’t hesitate to call our skilled attorneys if you or a loved one has been the victim of medical negligence.
Chapter 4: What is Medical Misdiagnosis?
Medical misdiagnosis is a misdiagnosis of an injury by a doctor or healthcare professional. It often occurs when a doctor misreads test results or prescribed the wrong medication for an injury or sickness.
Sometimes people lose their loved ones over the negligence of a third party. It happens when a doctor, for instance, guesses the patient’s condition and administers the wrong medication. Approximately 98,000 Americans die annually due to medical practitioners’ negligence, leading to untimely deaths. Mourning over the preventable death of a loved one is one of the most painful things a family can experience. The good news is that, despite the pain it brings, the affected family can lawfully bring the perpetrators to book by taking legal action against them.
Chapter 5: Examples of Medical Misdiagnosis
Several instances of medical negligence include misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis. Failure to diagnose a patient might delay the initiation of therapy. This may cause their sickness to develop and become more severe.
Examples of Misdiagnosis Include:
- A scenario whereby a doctor diagnoses a patient with a stomach issue while the patient is experiencing a heart attack. Or the physician makes a cancer diagnosis while the patient is cancer-free.
- A nursing mother with inflammatory breast cancer is misdiagnosed with mastitis and prescribed antibiotics.
- A young stroke patient is misdiagnosed with migraine, vertigo, or alcohol intoxication.
- An elderly heart attack patient is sent home from the emergency room with a diagnosis of indigestion and given a bottle of antacid.
Commonly misdiagnosed illnesses are:
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Cancer
- Melanoma
- Diabetes
- Infections
Can You Sue for Medical Malpractice?
Suppose you feel you or a loved one were hurt by a medical diagnostic error. In that case, you may consult a personal injury attorney and file a medical malpractice lawsuit against the doctor. You may be able to sue a hospital or drugstore in certain circumstances.
To receive compensation in a medical malpractice action, you must prove:
- The individual or company you are suing did not fulfill the standard of care for delivering diagnoses.
- The diagnostic mistake resulted in your suffering.
Through your injury attorney, you will be required to submit evidence demonstrating the doctor’s negligence and supporting your claims for damages. An expert personal injury attorney knows how to collect and present all necessary evidence to build the most robust case possible. You should get one from a reputable law firm like Robert J. DeBry & Associates.
If your medical malpractice claim is successful, you may be compensated for your medical expenses, lost wages, pain, and suffering, and other damages you incurred because of the medical diagnostic error.
Contact Our Law Firm for Help
When a doctor’s carelessness causes you injury, prompt legal counsel can help you protect your right to seek appropriate compensation. If you have been injured due to a misdiagnosis, contact us at Robert J. DeBry & Associates for an expert personal injury attorney who will help you win the case.
Chapter 6: What is Medical Negligence?
Patients trust medical professionals to provide quality treatment and care. Occasionally, the care provided falls below the expected standards. Medical negligence arises when doctors fail to perform their duties diligently and cause harm to patients. Negligence may occur because of diagnosis, treatment, and aftercare errors.
For you to file a case by Robert J. DeBry & Associates, there must be a show of injury, and proof of negligence by the medical professional. Always contact our injury attorney to select the type of medical negligence you should claim.
Most Common Types of Medical Negligence
- Injuries at Birth and During Pregnancy
Injuries at birth entail harm that the baby undergoes during and after pregnancy. The injuries may have long-term impacts on the mother or child. Examples of damages include paralysis of facials, fractures, and forceps marks.
- Cosmetic Care Negligence
Both women and men do cosmetic surgery. Several cases arise from cosmetic care due to the negligence of medical practitioners. When cosmetic surgery care is not maintained correctly, individuals suffer from long-term impacts like emotional damage and physical harm. Medical negligence leads to liposuction, tummy tuck, and variation in the size of breasts.
- Errors During Medication and Prescription
Man is to error, and thousands of prescriptions are written often, which may be erroneous. The errors during prescriptions might lead to the wrong administration of medication. A wrong prescription is a severe form of medical negligence that calls for personal injury attorneys due to its adverse effects. The negative effects vary and may lead to death.
- Misdiagnosis
Misdiagnosis happens when the medical practitioner fails to detect the exact condition of a patient. Misdiagnosis arises when the doctor feels that the patient is suffering from a different illness, which leads to incorrect treatment that worsens the patient’s condition. Also, misdiagnosis occurs when there is slow identification of the patient’s condition.
Do You Have a Medical Negligence Claim?
In case of any injury resulting from medical care negligence, consult our injury attorney at Robert J. DeBry & Associates to learn more from the team about medical negligence and find solutions.