Common Medical Negligence Claims

Common Medical Negligence Claims

A medical negligence case may occur when a medical professional, such as a doctor or nurse, makes a mistake that causes the patient serious injury or death. While errors are sometimes accidental, they are often preventable. Many medical negligence lawsuits result when a doctor does not administer the appropriate treatment, service, or medication. Read on to learn a little about common medical negligence claims. 

Misdiagnosis

A number of medical negligence claims are a result of misdiagnosis. Misdiagnosis occurs when a doctor incorrectly diagnoses a patient and does not provide the necessary and required medical treatment. Many victims of medical negligence experience misdiagnosis.

A delayed diagnosis or failure to diagnose in a reasonable amount of time may also lead to a medical negligence claim. A failure to diagnose a patient often leads to setbacks in providing potentially life-saving treatment. Failure to treat a patient due to misdiagnosis can lead to their illness worsening, and in some cases even death.

Prescription Medication Errors

Another common medical malpractice claim can occur when a patient has been prescribed the wrong medication. This includes prescribing multiple drugs that negatively interact with one another. One of the most frequent prescription errors occurs when a patient is given an incorrect dosage of a drug. Sometimes this is caused by the doctor prescribing the wrong dosage, while other times a nurse administers the incorrect dosage despite the doctor’s orders.

Misdiagnosis can also play a role in prescription medication errors. A medical malpractice lawsuit may occur when a doctor fails to properly diagnose a patient and prescribes the wrong medication for a condition that the patient does not have that causes injury or death.

Childbirth Injuries

Childbirth injuries are a common basis for a medical claim. A doctor must provide the proper care to both the mother and the fetus during the pregnancy. If a doctor is negligent during this time, it can lead to severe complications for both the woman and the fetus. Fetal distress can occur if a doctor does not monitor the pregnancy and provide the appropriate medical care, affecting the health of the mother and the child at birth. 

Injuries can also occur during childbirth, despite the mother experiencing a healthy pregnancy. There are many details that doctors must pay attention to during childbirth. This can include the placement of the umbilical cord, the correct usage of birthing tools, and the ability to judge when a c-section is necessary. If a doctor is negligent during childbirth, it can cause serious permanent and sometimes fatal complications for the mother and baby. 

Surgical Mistakes

Surgical errors are a common and often lead to negligence claims. Mistakes can occur in a variety of different ways. Surgical mistakes may occur when a doctor or surgeon leaves a surgical or non-surgical material in the patient; it can be something as small as a surgical sponge, or something as large as a pair of scissors. 

Another surgical error that leads to a medical negligence claim occurs when the doctor or surgeon performs the operation incorrectly, leading to severe complications. There are also cases in which doctors perform surgery on the entirely incorrect part of the body, which is a clear incident of medical negligence.

Anesthesia can also play a role in medical negligence claims due to failure on the part of the anesthesiologist. Patients may suffer complications and even death as a result of negligence by the anesthesiologist.

Final Thoughts

Medical negligence claims are very complicated and the information I have provided is a mere sketch of the many considerations and several types of claims involving medical negligence.  If you believe you have suffered from the medical negligence of a medical caregiver, you may wish to speak with an experienced medical negligence attorney to review your case and determine whether a pursuing a claim is advisable.  If you are considering pursuing a claim, contact us today to discuss your alternatives.