Hospital malpractice is an issue that occurs when the medical workers at a hospital (such as the doctors, nurses, technicians, etc.) are deemed to be negligent and because of this negligence a patient suffered a serious injury, or in some cases death. There are several forms of hospital malpractice, which include: patient misdiagnosis, providing the wrong medication, overlooking or ignoring patient allergies, failure to actually treat the patient, not following proper protocol or procedures during the treatment process, along with various other violations.
While the laws vary somewhat from state to state, each jurisdiction does have set standards that each and every hospital and medical professional needs to follow. These standards have been designed to ensure that all patients are treated in the same manner. If it can be shown that the hospital or medical staff has not followed these guidelines and met these standards, the patient may be able to seek help to file a complaint or lawsuit and receive compensation for damages.
From a more technical standpoint, hospital malpractice is defined as the negligence of a medical employee to act properly, allowing for physical harm to occur to the patient. The hospital has committed an act of malpractice when the patient or the surviving family members can prove the following:
The hospital owed the patient a "duty of care";
The hospital or its staff breached this duty and did not act in a manner that was considered to be appropriate, or in a way that other professionals would have acted in the same case;
This breach of duty was the direct cause of the physical harm that the patient endured, and would not have happened if the hospital had acted properly;
The patient is permitted to receive damages under the malpractice laws that govern the state in which the injury occurred.
When all of the above mentioned elements can be proven, the hospital is considered to be liable for the malpractice. While this may be clear, you may still be left wondering exactly how hospital malpractice can occur in a real world situation. Below are some of the most common cases for this type of violation:
There was a missed or delayed diagnosis: this could be a failure to order a certain test that would have quickly found a proper diagnosis, or it could be there was a complete error in a diagnosis. For instance, if a competent hospital worker should have ordered a particular test and a different diagnosis would have resulted; the hospital is liable for a case of malpractice.
There was a complete treatment failure: if the hospital decides not to treat a patient, or does not administer treatment promptly, or if the hospital does not recommend that the patient visit a specialist there has been a treatment failure. When any of these things happen, the hospital has placed the patient in harm and can and should be held accountable for negligence.
There was a failure to monitor the patient: After the patient was admitted the hospital, the hospital must abide by the duty of care expected. This includes monitoring the patient to ensure he or she is safe and being properly treated. If proper monitoring does not take place, and an injury occurs because of it, a negligent act has happened and the hospital is liable.
The number of staff that can be held accountable and for which a lawsuit can be filed may be restricted based upon their employment status, or role within the chain of command at the hospital. If the person who has breached the duty of care holds a position such as a nurse or other type of medical technician, the hospital can be held accountable and sue for negligence. That being said, if the negligence was committed by a contractor that is considered to be independent, the hospital cannot be held accountable, and the independent contractor only can be held liable. Many doctors independently contract with hospitals, and are not considered to be employees, so it is necessary to hire an attorney who can examine the details of your case in order to decide how to proceed, and who should be filed against.
All hospital malpractice claims start off in the same manner; a complaint is submitted to the court who oversees the jurisdiction. The complaint will spell out the details of the case, and will assert that the hospital was in fact negligent in performing the proper amount of care to the patient, which therefore resulted in injury or death. The complaint will also state that the patient or his or her family is entitled to receive compensation for these injuries.
Because the statute of limitations for filing hospital malpractice claims varies a great deal from state to state you should seek the advice of a professional malpractice attorney as soon as possible. In most cases, the time frame is one to four years from the time the incident occurred, however most states limit the filing time to two years. Because time is of the essence, you should not wait to consult with a professional. He or she can start compiling your case immediately and can collect all of the needed evidence to solidify your claim.
A hospital malpractice attorney can help you to recover damages to help secure your future. Because most injuries that result force patients to lose work, suffer permanent disabilities, lose quality of life, and even experience substantial out of pocket expenses, you need someone with experience working hard on your side to get you the justice you deserve.
You cannot file a claim on your own, and you should never try to do so. A professional medical malpractice attorney will assume your case, work on all the details for you, and allow you the time needed to heal and move on with your life. You should not settle for less than you deserve or risk being a victim twice. Hospitals and medical professionals have plenty of attorneys working hard on their side and so should you.
For information on medical malpractice lawyers & attorneys, visit the Philadelphia law firm website FeldmanShepherd.com.
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