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Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice is an act or omission by a hospital or health care professional that deviates from the accepted standards of care in the medical community and causes injury, illness, or death to a patient. In short, it's professional negligence on the part of a medical provider. A victim of medical malpractice or his family may be able to recover compensation including medical expenses, pain and suffering, wage loss, future medical care, and loss of society.
As many as 98,000 people die each year as a result of medical mistakes in hospitals alone. A 2006 study found that medication errors are among the most common medical mistakes, harming up to 1.5 million people every year.
Medical malpractice claims include mistakes by doctors, hospitals, nurses, dentists, osteopaths, and others providing health care services. Here are some examples of the kinds of failures that may constitute medical malpractice:
- Inaccurate or delayed diagnosis of a life-threatening disease or condition, leading to death or impaired functioning.
- Administration of too much or too little anesthesia.
- A medical mistake at birth that results in brain damage to the infant.
- Failure of hospital staff members to exercise due care and maintain proper standards, such as for safety and sanitation, resulting in the patient being stricken with a serious infection or injury other than the condition for which he was hospitalized.
- A mix-up in prescriptions by a pharmacist.
- A botched surgical procedure.
- Failure to obtain the required consent for treatment.
Litigating a medical malpractice case is costly, as one or more experts must be retained in order to prove your case. Therefore, your potential damages must be substantial enough to make a case economically viable to pursue. Medical malpractice litigation is also complex, which is why it is important to select a law firm with the skill and experience in these types of cases to give your claim the best chance for success.
There are strict time limits for filing medical malpractice cases. If you believe that you or a family member has been the victim of medical malpractice, contact us right away to evaluate your claim. Contact us online or call us at 312.345.0220, or toll free at 1.888.372.5355, for more information or to schedule a free consultation.
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