Medical Negligence and Medical Malpractice Problems in the United States
May 7, 2012 By The Law Offices of Dr. Bruce Fagel
Medical negligence is defined as the act or omission in treatment of a patient by a medical professional, which deviates from the accepted medical standard of care. Medical malpractice is negligence whereby a medical professional did not take the proper action required in a reasonable amount of time and this negligence caused injuries to the patient.
Every year, nearly a quarter million people die in the United States from medical malpractice. In addition, many patients are injured, including serious injuries from medical negligence.
Physicians and other healthcare professionals take the Hippocratic Oath, which in essence is a promise to treat their patients to the best of their ability and not cause them harm. However, doctors sometimes break this oath, and are therefore considered negligent in legal terminology. Medical negligence is defined as the act or omission in treatment of a patient by a medical professional, which deviates from the accepted medical standard of care. Medical malpractice is negligence whereby a medical professional did not take the proper action required in a reasonable amount of time and this negligence caused injuries to the patient.
Examples of medical negligence and medical malpractice:
Medical misdiagnosis: A common form of medical negligence is misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose a medical problem. It is often vital to a patient’s health that a physician recognizes the symptoms and properly diagnoses the problem. A misdiagnosis can lead to incorrect treatment or treatment that worsens the patient’s medical condition. It can also lead to the wrong drugs prescribed. Mistakes like misdiagnosis can also lead to death.
Examples of misdiagnosis include misdiagnosis of cancer, misdiagnosis of a stroke, misdiagnosis of a heart attack, misdiagnosis of an infection, and meningitis misdiagnosis. For example, if a stroke is misdiagnosed, the brain will be starved of oxygen for an extended period of time, causing permanent brain and nerve damage. Some of the results of a stroke include:
Paralysis on one side of the body;
Diminished capacity to speak or understand speech;
Reduction in motor skills;
Reduction in mental capacity;
Reduction in senses.
It is also important that a physician follows up with the patient in a timely manner. If a doctor provides treatment but fails to monitor the progress, the patient’s condition could worsen. If a patient with high blood iron content is prescribed regular blood drawings to reduce the iron levels in the blood, but does not follow up to see the possible negative impact on the general immune system functions, the regular blood drawings could cause serious damage to the patient’s immune system, possibly resulting in the eventual death of the patient.
Surgical Error: If a doctor accidentally cuts or cauterizes an internal organ, foreign fluids such as feces, bile, or urine could potentially lead to severe infections, and possible death for the patient. Other examples include wrong site surgery where the surgeon operates on the wrong area or even the wrong side of the body or removes the wrong appendage.
Anesthesia errors: Anesthesia errors are a frequent area of medical malpractice, including in hospitals and doctor’s offices. The administration of anesthesia poses a high risk during a surgical procedure. Anesthesia errors also frequently happen outside the hospital setting for routine elective plastic surgery including gastric bypass, lap band, liposuction, and breast augmentation.
If you or someone you love was seriously injured or died as the result of medical negligence or medical malpractice, you should contact the best medical malpractice lawyer possible.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Bruce Fagel
Dr. Fagel is an attorney and physician who represents plaintiffs in medical malpractice cases against doctors and hospitals exclusively on behalf of injured patients. His practice focuses on complex medical malpractice cases resulting in catastrophic injuries caused by doctor or hospital negligence, such as birth or brain damage, induced hypertension, wrongful death, cerebral palsy, Erb's palsy, nursing home negligence, misdiagnosis of cancer and paraplegia cases.
Dr. Fagel graduated from the University Of Illinois Medical College Of Medicine, M.D., 1972. He earned his law degree at Whittier College School of Law, Los Angeles, CA, J.D., 1982.
Copyright The Law Offices of Dr. Bruce Fagel
More information about The Law Offices of Dr. Bruce Fagel
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
Physicians and other healthcare professionals take the Hippocratic Oath, which in essence is a promise to treat their patients to the best of their ability and not cause them harm. However, doctors sometimes break this oath, and are therefore considered negligent in legal terminology. Medical negligence is defined as the act or omission in treatment of a patient by a medical professional, which deviates from the accepted medical standard of care. Medical malpractice is negligence whereby a medical professional did not take the proper action required in a reasonable amount of time and this negligence caused injuries to the patient.
Examples of medical negligence and medical malpractice:
Medical misdiagnosis: A common form of medical negligence is misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose a medical problem. It is often vital to a patient’s health that a physician recognizes the symptoms and properly diagnoses the problem. A misdiagnosis can lead to incorrect treatment or treatment that worsens the patient’s medical condition. It can also lead to the wrong drugs prescribed. Mistakes like misdiagnosis can also lead to death.
Examples of misdiagnosis include misdiagnosis of cancer, misdiagnosis of a stroke, misdiagnosis of a heart attack, misdiagnosis of an infection, and meningitis misdiagnosis. For example, if a stroke is misdiagnosed, the brain will be starved of oxygen for an extended period of time, causing permanent brain and nerve damage. Some of the results of a stroke include:
Paralysis on one side of the body;
Diminished capacity to speak or understand speech;
Reduction in motor skills;
Reduction in mental capacity;
Reduction in senses.
It is also important that a physician follows up with the patient in a timely manner. If a doctor provides treatment but fails to monitor the progress, the patient’s condition could worsen. If a patient with high blood iron content is prescribed regular blood drawings to reduce the iron levels in the blood, but does not follow up to see the possible negative impact on the general immune system functions, the regular blood drawings could cause serious damage to the patient’s immune system, possibly resulting in the eventual death of the patient.
Surgical Error: If a doctor accidentally cuts or cauterizes an internal organ, foreign fluids such as feces, bile, or urine could potentially lead to severe infections, and possible death for the patient. Other examples include wrong site surgery where the surgeon operates on the wrong area or even the wrong side of the body or removes the wrong appendage.
Anesthesia errors: Anesthesia errors are a frequent area of medical malpractice, including in hospitals and doctor’s offices. The administration of anesthesia poses a high risk during a surgical procedure. Anesthesia errors also frequently happen outside the hospital setting for routine elective plastic surgery including gastric bypass, lap band, liposuction, and breast augmentation.
If you or someone you love was seriously injured or died as the result of medical negligence or medical malpractice, you should contact the best medical malpractice lawyer possible.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Bruce Fagel
Dr. Fagel is an attorney and physician who represents plaintiffs in medical malpractice cases against doctors and hospitals exclusively on behalf of injured patients. His practice focuses on complex medical malpractice cases resulting in catastrophic injuries caused by doctor or hospital negligence, such as birth or brain damage, induced hypertension, wrongful death, cerebral palsy, Erb's palsy, nursing home negligence, misdiagnosis of cancer and paraplegia cases.
Dr. Fagel graduated from the University Of Illinois Medical College Of Medicine, M.D., 1972. He earned his law degree at Whittier College School of Law, Los Angeles, CA, J.D., 1982.
Copyright The Law Offices of Dr. Bruce Fagel
More information about The Law Offices of Dr. Bruce Fagel
View all articles published by The Law Offices of Dr. Bruce Fagel
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
