If you have experienced injury, disability, or illness from seeking medical treatment, you may have fallen victim to medical malpractice. Medical malpractice is when a doctor or other medical professional - nurse or technician - does something, or fails to do something, that harms his patient.
The key factors involved are:
- A physician or medical professional's error, and
- Resulting harm.
Mistakes can happen at any time during medical treatment. But errors due to negligence can lead to especially tragic results. If a negligent physician error has caused you serious harm, or caused the death of a loved one, you may have a medical malpractice claim.
If you feel that a medical professional made a mistake or error, you may be able to collect damages from those responsible. Compensation can be awarded for:
- Excessive medical bills, bills exceeding your original treatment
- Lost wages (past and future)
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Emotional distress
- Loss of companionship (for the death of a loved one)
Most importantly, by filing a suit you can make sure that the same medical treatment error never happens to another person in your situation.
However, a medical malpractice claim must be filed timely, before it is too late. If you wait too long, you may be prevented from filing a claim. Furthermore, you do not have to worry about the cost of filing a claim. An experienced medical malpractice attorney will take your case on a "contingency fee" basis, meaning that your attorney only collects payment once the case is won.
No matter the reason, medical malpractice claims manifest in many different ways as there are numerous procedures that medical professionals are required to follow to ensure accuracy and safety. If someone does not do his job properly, you or your loved ones could pay the ultimate price. While we should continue to trust our doctors and medical professionals, we should be mindful of the possible mistakes that can forever affect an innocent person's life.
Medical malpractice mistakes resulting in injury or death can be extremely costly to your family. Medical bills skyrocket from post-error treatment, and the loss of your loved one creates immense emotional suffering and loss of income for which you are entitled to compensation. Often, those who made the mistake will offer to settle and pay for medical expenses, but that rarely serves to make you and your family whole again following such a tragedy. A personal injury attorney qualified in litigating medical malpractice can advise you of the steps you can take to hold those who made the fatal error accountable and to collect the funds that you deserve.
