What is medical negligence?
Medical negligence is a part of personal injury law which deals with injuries that result from medical malpractice at the hands of health professionals. To understand this we have to understand who constitutes as a healthcare professional in the first place. Besides doctors, these can include:
- Paramedics
- Nurses
- Dentists
- EMTs
- Nurses
- Midwives
- Lab technicians
- Prosthetic technicians
- Dieticians
- Audiologists and optometrists
Anyone who thinks they suffered negligent medical malpractice at the hands of any of the aforementioned medical professionals must prove 4 things:
- The medical professional did not maintain standard of care
- You suffered an injury that is compensable
- The injury was caused by a lowering of substandard conduct
- The medical practitioner did not maintain duty of care.
Medical negligence is not difficult to determine but only if your attorney is able to prove that there was a violation of the duty of care. Every medical professional is obligated to care for his/her patients and once that duty of care is established and violated, you have to prove there was a breach of said duty which led to the injury. In other words, you need to prove that the level of care that was due to you was not rendered.
This can happen during any stage of the treatment you underwent from the medical professional so it includes diagnosis, treatment and medical advice. However, this may not be the case all the time. For instance, if a doctor performed surgery on the wrong patient, he/she can prove there was no breach of duty or care.
Your attorney will also have to prove that the breach of duty caused the damages that you suffered. This means that you have to prove that the damages were caused directly or indirectly by the negligence. This also includes showing the damages you suffered and those don’t have to be physical only. For instance, psychological and emotional trauma can be held up in court in your favor as can loss of wages or a decrease in your quality of life due to the medical negligence.
However, the damages you wish to claim should not be unreasonable. For example, stating that you could not find employment because of a botched cosmetic procedure will be hard to hold up in court. Costs incurred because of aftercare to take care of the aftermath of a botched procedure or any treatment can be claimed from the medical professional who is guilty of it.
If you or anyone you know has suffered medical malpractice or disabilities due to medical negligence, Javier and Marcos Associates have the attorneys who can help. This includes wrongful death cases which might have been avoided with proper standard of medical care. There is nothing more painful than losing a loved one to shoddy or negligent treatment and we can help you claim fair compensation for your suffering. Contact us today and find out how.
https://www.attorneyjaviermarcos.com/accidents/wrongful-death/
