Suffering an injury due to the negligence of a doctor or healthcare professional can be one of the most traumatizing events you undergo. There is an expectation that you will be taken care of when you are in a hospital or clinic and that you will not be subjected to any harm. In many cases, individuals who have been damaged may not even be aware that they can sue for compensation; they just believe that there are occupational hazards that come with being a patient. This is not true – a doctor has a duty to protect you in many ways, and if his actions caused you to sustain injuries, you could very well receive a settlement for your suffering. Our team of experienced Tulare attorneys at Normandie Law Firm is here to help you recover damages from a medical malpractice injury; we believe that all doctors and nurses should be held responsible for their errors. Our clients often call us with questions about medical malpractice claims and what the best route forward is. Examples of these questions include:
- Where can I find a Tulare attorney for medical malpractice cases?
- Who are the best Tulare County attorneys for medical negligence?
- I need a surgery malpractice lawyer. Who should I call?
Defining Medical Malpractice
You go to the doctor for any number of reasons – checkups, surgeries, procedures, therapy, and more. During these visits, it is a doctor’s duty to make sure you stay out of harm’s way, and it is his job to figure out what is wrong with you and to alleviate the issue as best he can. This may come in the form of hands on treatment, a recommendation, or doctor’s orders.
In essence, a medical malpractice claim can be filed if you meet a few points of negligence. These points are similar to the points of negligence regular personal injury claims require. They are as follows:
- You and the doctor must have entered into a doctor/patient relationship. This can be in the form of signed documents or an implicit agreement. For example, if you schedule an appointment with a doctor and agree to pay him for his services, you would be in a doctor/patient relationship. Additionally, if you were rushed to the emergency room and the doctor immediately got to work on helping you, that would be considered an implicit agreement.
- The doctor must have shown negligence in his actions. Doctors often have numerous different paths they can take and decisions to make in order to help you; a doctor can be found to have been negligent if he committed acts or made choices that other reasonably competent doctors would otherwise not have done.
- The negligent actions of the doctor must have led to an injury. If the doctor or nurse mistakenly operated somewhere or if there was an incorrect dosage of medication administered that caused an injury, this point would be fulfilled.
- The injury must have led to actual harm or damages. Sometimes, a medical error does not cause any pain, disfigurement, problems, or effects. These types of injuries are benign and harmless, and there are no repercussions for them. You can only file a claim if the injury led to specific damages.
If you are a victim of medical negligence, you may find it overwhelmingly difficult to prove these points of negligence to an insurance agency or in court. A medical negligence attorney in Tulare County can help you receive the compensation you deserve and help direct your case.
Medical Mistake Examples
It is important to understand what would constitute a medical error so that your lawsuit would not be thrown out prematurely or even based on the wrong injury. In many cases, if you no longer have the same control or range of motion in your body, or if you have apparent internal health problems after a procedure, you were likely the victim of a medical error. Some examples include:
- Botched Surgery: A mistake during surgery can lead to many complications. For example, if you were undergoing a procedure to fix a simple broken bone, you should only have to sit through a few weeks of immobility in an immobilizing cast before receiving physical therapy. However, there is a chance that the doctor may set the bone wrong or mistakenly sever a nerve upon making an incision. A severed nerve can lead to a loss of feeling in the limb and other complications. You can sue the surgeon for a surgical error.
- Wrong Diagnosis: A misdiagnosis of a condition can lead to disastrous results. Some doctors even outright miss diagnoses and lead you to believe that you are healthy and suffering phantom pains. If a misdiagnosis or wrong diagnosis makes you forgo treatment and your condition worsens, you can likely sue the doctor in a medical malpractice lawsuit.
- Improper Drug or Medication: A doctor may administer medication that causes an allergic reaction or triggers adverse effects. These instances can be fatal if the dosage is too high. Further, incorrect dosages can lead to patients taking more than they should and potentially overdosing.
- Wrongful Death: In some cases, a hospital may not do everything it can to save an individual or it may even make a mistake that leads to a death. A botched surgery or mistaken dosage of medication can cause death in patients, and if so, we can help you sue the hospital for the loss of your loved one.
Some of these hospital errors can cause other injuries, including brain injury, spinal cord injury, paralysis, infection (due to improper sterilization of surgical equipment), and more. Do not let a hospital walk away from its responsibility of paying you your fair compensation for your damages. Call a medical malpractice lawyer in Tulare today.
Statute of Limitations
It is important that you familiarize yourself with the statute of limitations regarding your medical malpractice claim. Statutes of limitations are put into effect to encourage victims to file lawsuits in a timely manner. Waiting too long to do so can cause evidence to get corrupted or lost and witnesses may forget details or have their memories fogged.
The statute for filing a medical malpractice claim is 1 year from the discovery of the injury or 3 years from the injury itself. There are exceptions, however; for instance, if you were a minor at the time of the injury, the statute is temporarily suspended until you turn 18. Further, if there were any foreign objects left in the body, there is no statute of limitations as to when you can sue.
Your Compensation
As a victim of medical malpractice, you can earn various types of compensation for your damages. You deserve to receive a fair and sizeable settlement if a doctor or nurse caused damage to your body while you were under their cares. Our Tulare lawyers with experience in medical malpractice cases can help bring you:
- Medical expenses, which can be covered from both the past and the future. Anything related to your hospital bills can be reimbursed through the insurance agency.
- Lost wages, which can also be reimbursed from both the past and the future. You may have missed time at work; your income should not suffer due to the negligence of another party.
- Pain and suffering, or emotional damages, including PTSD, fear, anxiety, mental scarring, and more. It should be noted that there is a cap on these damages: you can only earn up to $250,000 for noneconomic compensation. Medical expenses, on the other hand, have no ceiling.
Do not hesitate to call a Tulare medical malpractice attorney for help in filing your claim.
Normandie’s Help
Our med mal lawyers with expertise in malpractice cases at Normandie Law Firm are here to help bring you fair compensation for your medical malpractice lawsuit. You should not be expected to pay for your own bills if you were harmed because a doctor or nurse made a mistake.
Call us today for a free legal consultation. You can ask any questions about the legal process, and we will give you necessary information on filing a lawsuit. If you choose us to represent you in court, you can also receive our zero fee guarantee – you will pay no out of pocket expenses for our services; if we win, our payment comes from the settlement we earn for you. If we lose, you owe us nothing at all.
Our lawyers serve Tulare County and beyond, and have settled cases with doctors from all the major hospitals in the county, including Kaweah Delta Mental Health Hospital D/P Aph – Visalia, Kaweah Delta Medical Center – Visalia , Kaweah Delta Rehabilitation Hospital – Visalia, Kaweah Delta Skilled Nursing Facility – Visalia, Porterville Developmental Center – Porterville, Sierra View District Hospital – Porterville, Tulare Regional Medical Center, Memorial Hospital, Southern Inyo Clinic, and Kern Valley Hospital.
Contact us today to speak with one of our aggressive lawyers at Normandie Law Firm.
