Health care providers must perform up to the standard of care to ensure the health and safety of their patients. Medical professionals are among the most trusted individuals. If any healthcare professional directly causes an injury to a patient through failing to provide appropriate care, it may be considered one of the common types of medical malpractice.
An experienced medical malpractice lawyer at The Fitch Law Firm can help you determine what your case is worth based on your medical records and current condition and by consulting medical experts. Before you file a lawsuit, knowing what medical malpractice is and how to recognize it is essential.
What is Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice has become a public health problem that needs to be addressed. A study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) recently found that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the U.S.
In 2023, Johns Hopkins Medicine estimated 371,000 annual deaths and 424,000 permanent disabilities caused by medical errors in the U.S. In general, medical malpractice is linked with higher mortality rates, morbidity, and an overall economic burden.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), medical malpractice payouts totaled over $4 billion in 2022. If you or your loved one’s healthcare provider failed to perform up to standard, you may be entitled to financial compensation.
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The Most Common Types of Medical Malpractice
The most common types of medical malpractice include:
- Misdiagnosis
- Failure or delay of diagnosis
- Medication error
- Surgical error
- Anesthesia errors
- Birth injuries
- Lack of informed consent
- Defective medical devices
- Poor aftercare/communication errors
- Hospital-Acquired infections
What is Misdiagnosis?
An incorrectly diagnosed condition leads to incorrect treatment. If your doctor incorrectly diagnosed a medical condition, you may have received treatment that could have adverse health effects.
In addition, you most likely did not receive treatment for the condition you do have. A misdiagnosis can cause your current medical condition to worsen. Any damaging or fatal consequences of a misdiagnosis may be considered medical malpractice.
Potential causes of a misdiagnosis include:
- Failing to read patient history
- Misinterpreting test results
- Failing to order the necessary tests
The uncertainty of an incorrect diagnosis can lead to anxiety, depression, or stress for the patient. There may also be additional medical costs that come with a misdiagnosis and corrective treatment.
An experienced misdiagnosis lawyer can reach out to medical and financial experts to evaluate a potential malpractice case.
What is Failure or Delay of Diagnosis?
A failed or delayed diagnosis can cause a person to lack the treatment they need for their condition. Failing to diagnose a treatable health condition can have fatal or life-long consequences. There are several ways a health professional can fail to diagnose a patient within an appropriate time.
The Institute of Medicine provides a two-part definition for diagnostic errors: “the failure to (a) establish an accurate and timely explanation of the patient’s health problem(s) or (b) communicate that explanation to the patient.”
A patient’s diagnosis must be determined with sufficient evidence, as well as explained thoroughly to the patient so they are aware of their condition(s) in a timely manner. Failing to do so may be considered medical malpractice and potentially cause severe damage to the patient.
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What is a Medication Error?
Types of medication errors:
- Administering/prescribing the wrong dosage
- Administering/prescribing the wrong medication
- Failing to administer medication (drug omission)
- Failing to consider the patient’s history
- Administering medication too quickly
Depending on the type of medication error, the patient could experience a variety of different health complications. If the patient is allergic to the type of medication given a range of reactions could occur, from mild rashes and itchiness to throat swelling and having difficulty breathing. An allergic reaction to medication can even cause a patient to go into anaphylactic shock and require immediate medical attention.
If medication is given too quickly or in the wrong dosage, the patient could overdose. An overdose can lead to the patient falling unconscious, into a coma, or dying.
Certain types of overdoses, such as opioid overdoses, can lead to slowed breathing and this lack of oxygen heightens the risk for permanent brain damage.
What is a Surgical Error?
If a surgeon makes a mistake while operating on a patient and causes them harm, it is considered medical malpractice.
Examples of surgical errors:
- Failing to prevent infection
- Injuring organs near the operating site
- Performing surgery on the wrong patient or location on the body
- Performing surgery on a high-risk patient without consent
- Performing the wrong surgery on a patient
- Cutting a nerve or blood vessel while operating
Complications from surgical errors range in severity and can impact each patient differently. Common issues that are caused by surgical errors include chronic pain, organ damage, nerve damage, disfigurement, internal bleeding and potentially death.
Many surgical errors lead to severe damage or permanent harm.
What is an Anesthesia Error?
Anesthesia errors can occur during surgery, while monitoring a patient, and while calculating the dosage. If the health professional fails to monitor the patient, accurately calculate the dosage, or doesn’t take the patient’s history into account, it may be considered malpractice.
Other examples of anesthesia errors include:
- Equipment malfunction can occur when the anesthesiologist uses defective equipment and fails to address it, causing harm to the patient.
- Incorrect dosage administration occurs when the dosage was incorrectly calculated and then administered to the patient, too much or too little anesthesia can lead to a patient experiencing pain during an operation or being too heavily sedated.
The Consequences of Anesthesia Errors
There are several consequences caused by anesthesia errors that can lead patients to developing life-long health issues. One of the most severe effects of improperly using anesthesia is brain damage.
If the patient’s brain is deprived of oxygen for too long due to anesthesia complications, brain damage is induced, and a range of impairments may develop. This includes long-term memory loss, impaired judgment, mood changes, and learning issues. In severe cases, the symptoms may appear to be dementia-like, even in a young adult.
Along with brain damage, there are other health deficits that can set in if anesthesia is improperly administered. A patient can develop respiratory depression, which is slowed breathing due to an excessive amount of anesthesia.
They can also develop cardiovascular instability, where their heart rate and blood pressure may become abnormal. Anesthesia is an important drug that allows healthcare workers to operate without the worry of causing pain.
However, anesthesia can be just as dangerous as it is helpful when used incorrectly.
What Are Birth Injuries?
Any harm caused to the mother or baby before, during, or shortly after delivery is considered a birth injury. In the U.S., around 30,000 babies, or three babies every hour, are born with a birth injury annually (Cerebral Palsy Guide).
Roughly 10,000 children are born with cerebral palsy every year, making it the most common birth injury in the U.S. (Cerebral Palsy Guidance).
Many families are left to cope with their child’s symptoms without knowing that medical negligence is a significant factor in causing birth injuries.
Other common birth injuries include:
- Brain damage, oftentimes caused by oxygen deprivation, can cause several different birth injuries including cerebral palsy, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), and kernicterus.
- Nerve damage, can be caused by rough handling or carelessness with a baby’s extremities, may lead to a serious condition such as Erb’s palsy or Brachial plexus palsy.
- Spinal cord damage, also considered a type of nerve damage, occurs when there is trauma to the infant’s spinal cord. There may be partial or complete damage to the nerves in the spinal cord which can cause restricted mobility and impaired bodily functions.
- Skull fracture, or cephalohematoma, occurs when there is bleeding between the baby’s skull and scalp. Skull fractures can lead to blood loss that potentially lasts up to three months.
- Forceps injuries, caused by improper use of medical tools, can bruise or lacerate the baby. The mother can also be injured by improper use of forceps.
Half of All Birth Injuries Are Potentially Preventable
The Birth Injury Guide estimates that nearly 50% of all birth injuries are potentially preventable through identification and planning. This direct correlation between medical malpractice and birth injuries is concerning and emphasizes the need for an experienced birth injury attorney.
An attorney will contact any necessary experts to understand you or your child’s injury best and how it was caused.
What is Lack of Informed Consent?
Before getting a patient’s consent for an operation, informing them of all the risks, benefits, and options for alternative treatments is crucial. Failing to do so may result in the patient being harmed and filing a lawsuit against the healthcare provider or hospital.
Every patient has the right to know what will happen during an operation and what risk they are putting themselves in by having it. Without this information, it is impossible to provide consent appropriately.
Doctors have a responsibility to their patients to disclose all information about their patient’s treatment, and not performing up to this standard may be considered medical malpractice.
What Are Defective Medical Devices?
A medical device that does not perform as intended or meet safety requirements is considered defective. Using a medical device that is considered defective can put a patient at risk of being further injured. Medical devices that may be or become defective include:
- Pacemakers can cause an irregular heartbeat, fainting, and even cardiac arrest when defective. A pacemaker can fail if there are software issues, battery failure, an insulation break, or a circuit failure.
- Defibrillators can fail to save someone’s life or deliver an unnecessary shock if defective. Excess shocks can cause pain, infections at the implant site, and potentially death if it fails to correct a heart arrhythmia.
- Insulin pumps can cause high blood pressure or diabetic ketoacidosis if defective due to inconsistent insulin delivery.
- Drug-coated stents that are defective can cause a blood clot to develop in the stent, also called “stent thrombosis,” which may cause a heart attack or stroke.
- Hip implants can cause pain, instability, infection, bone loss, or limited mobility when defective. They may also lead to tumors forming around the implant and require necessary revision surgery.
- Hernia mesh can cause various complications if defective including bowel obstruction, organ damage, severe infections, bleeding, or tissue adhesins to internal organs. A defective hernia mesh puts a patient at serious risk of experiencing persistent pain.
- IVC filters may cause blood clots to develop around the filter (IVC thrombosis) or in a vein in the leg (deep vein thrombosis). These blood clots can travel to the lungs and potentially block an artery. A defective IVC filter can cause a heart attack, stroke, and death.
Poor Aftercare/Communication Errors
Receiving appropriate aftercare following a patient’s procedure is vital for any successful operation. Appropriate aftercare includes effectively communicating with the patient and promptly addressing any complications that develop after treatment.
Poor aftercare also includes dismissing patient’s concerns/questions, not documenting essential information about the patient, and a delayed response to any complications that arise.
If a patient is not properly monitored during and after treatment, the treatment may become ineffective. A medical malpractice lawyer can help you determine whether the aftercare you received was malpractice.
What Are Hospital-Acquired Infections?
If a patient’s infection was caused by health professionals failing to take appropriate care after or during a procedure, it is considered medical malpractice. Types of hospital-acquired infections include:
- Surgical site infections (SSIs)
- Pneumonia
- Urinary tract infections (UTIs)
- MRSA
- Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP)
- Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs)
If an infection develops, a patient may become septic, be hospitalized for an extended time, and have significantly higher medical costs. Severe infections can lead to organ failure, disabilities, and death. Infection cases can be particularly challenging in the context of medical malpractice cases.
What is Standard of Care?
The standard of care refers to the level of care a competent medical professional would provide for a specific type of patient or diagnosis under the same circumstances.
If a medical professional deviates from the standard of care they are acting negligently, which is oftentimes considered malpractice. In a case of medical malpractice, the injured party or their family can file a lawsuit for compensation.
It is important to know the level of treatment you deserve as a patient of medical professionals and when that treatment is less than standard.
How to Recognize Medical Malpractice
There are several ways to identify a potential case of medical malpractice. You know your medical experience, so it is critical to evaluate how medical malpractice was involved.
Signs that you could be a victim of medical malpractice:
- Your treatment plan isn’t working
- You experience severe complications after treatment
- Severity of the injury and treatment plan don’t match
- New symptoms arise after treatment
- Lack of informed consent
- Your doctor has stopped communicating after treatment
If you notice any new health complications or symptoms after receiving treatment, especially if your healthcare provider failed to warn you of them, you may be a victim of medical malpractice.
Having sufficient evidence to prove medical malpractice is crucial for winning a case. A well-versed lawyer can help collect and organize the necessary evidence to strengthen your case.
Your Next Step: Contact a Medical Malpractice Lawyer & Start Healing
If you or a loved one has been seriously harmed by medical malpractice, feel free to reach out to us. Our compassionate team will make sure you and your family get the compensation you deserve, and if we don’t win, you don’t pay. We will ensure that you understand your rights as a patient and empower you with our expert representation.
Call our dedicated team, available to help you 24/7, at (614) 412-8930 or fill out a form for your free consultation. If your condition prevents you from traveling, we will come to you and do everything in our power to help.