The Most Common Medical Malpractice Lawsuits Doctors Face

https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2016/11/14/03/05/surgery-1822458__480.jpg

 

People go to their doctors for treatment because they trust their physicians to provide them relief from their ailments. Most of the time, doctors go above and beyond to ensure that their patients receive the best care possible. However, it is also pretty common for them to make mistakes. Often, these mistakes cause more harm than good.

Top 5 Medical Malpractice Claims Filed Against Doctors

1. Failure to Diagnose the Patient’s Medical Condition

One of the most common lawsuits that doctors have to deal with in their practice would be a failure to diagnose the patient’s medical condition. However, it is essential to note that, on its own, misdiagnosis alone cannot be considered medical malpractice because even doctors, even seasoned doctors can make mistakes. There are certain medical conditions wherein the presentation would not follow the hallmark symptoms. Failure to diagnose can only be considered medical malpractice when the doctor did not provide the proper medical care necessary or delayed the treatment process that worsened the patient’s medical condition. It is also fairly common for doctors to miss an underlying medical condition because they are too focused on the first condition.

2. Patient Injury During Medical Treatment

Doctors can also be held liable if they cause a patient’s injury which led to their disability. Remember, however, that there are certain cases where a doctor injures a patient in order to provide treatment. One example is when providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to a patient who suffered cardiac arrest. To revive the patient, the doctor may perform cardiac compressions that may cause broken ribs. In such a case, the doctor is only doing their duty and cannot be held criminally liable should the patient die because their action was bound by their commitment to restart the patient’s heart.

However, the other side of the coin would be when a doctor injures a patient during a procedure like surgeries. For example, a surgeon may resect an organ by mistake, causing the patient to lose functionality. Suppose the doctor has performed a kidney transplant and injured a ureter in the process. This may cause the patient to experience urinary incontinence. In this case, the patient has all the right to work with medical malpractice lawyers such as Tinker law firm and sue the doctor for medical malpractice.

3. Failure to Treat Medical Conditions

Sometimes, doctors can be overly confident and fail to realize that a medical condition is now beyond their control. When this happens, they would not refer their patients to a specialist, causing the condition to worsen.

4. Failure to Keep Medical Documentation

Physicians are adept at caring for their patients, but they can often fail at keeping an accurate and complete record of their patient’s health data. Sometimes, patients require a copy of their medical reports, and failure to provide these can be grounds for medical malpractice because it demonstrates negligence in keeping their patient’s data up-to-date.

5. Medication Mistakes

Pharmacology is a practice that doctors need to be well-versed in. They have to know the drug interactions and side effects that their prescribed medications can make. Errors in providing medications can cause a patient’s condition to worsen or, worse, death. Sometimes, doctors can make errors in dosages that may cause the patient to overdose.

These medical malpractice cases show that doctors are humans, too, and can make mistakes. However, this should not be an excuse for them to become lenient in their patient care.

This is a guest blog entry.