All medical practitioners including doctors, nurses, and other physicians are held to a high standard of care that they indeed generally meet. However, this responsibility can occasionally be neglected, thus causing injuries by a medical practitioner that was meant to assist their patients.
Medical malpractice, also known as medical negligence, is when a doctor, medical practitioner, health care facility, or hospital fails to care for a patient in accordance with the established standards of the medical profession. If that occurs, it will result in injury or a worsened condition after the procedure or diagnosis. Should this happen to you or to a loved one, it is very important to contact a medical malpractice lawyer or the best medical negligence lawyers who can help you file and resolve your claim.
What are the basic requirements for a medical malpractice claim?
There are several things that you must be able to prove in hopes of prevailing in medical malpractice cases. Nonetheless, trying to achieve that on your own is literally impossible. That is why a medical malpractice attorney will be able to assist you throughout the entire process. These are the elements of medical malpractice:
- A patient-doctor relationship. For a medical malpractice claim, you have to prove that you and the healthcare provider that you’re suing had an established physician-patient relationship. This indicates that you hired the medical professional, as well as giving consent allowing them to treat a specific condition or illness. These services are limited to their location of work, such as private practice or a hospital.
- A breach in the duty of care. All medical practitioners must adhere to a set of standards set by the medical community. Your doctor is required by law to provide you with services that meet these requirements.
So, in that regard, a breach of duty is a careless conduct, or failure to act. This can happen for example, by removing the wrong organ or leaving a surgical tool in the body. For the medical malpractice claim, your malpractice attorney will have to demonstrate that the healthcare provider caused you damage that under similar circumstances, a competent physician would not have.
- Causation. For a medical malpractice case to prevail, you have to prove that the damage was a direct result of the negligence of the doctor or nurse. Additional medical procedures or treatments, documents, and testimonials from healthcare professionals are commonly used to demonstrate the connection between your injuries and the negligence of a practitioner. All top medical malpractice lawyers can help you with this.
- Damages. There must be economic or non-economic damages as a result of the negligence for a medical malpractice case to prevail. Economic damages include financial losses such as medical expenditures, lost income, and a loss of business opportunities.
Non-economic damages are more subjective and include loss of enjoyment in life, emotional distress, and pain and suffering, among others.
Contact a Medical Malpractice Lawyer Today!
Medical malpractice law is governed by a complicated set of regulations that varies greatly from state to state so it is always important to seek legal advice. The right malpractice law firm or medical injury attorney with professional skill and experience can get you the compensation you deserve. Get in touch with one today!