What is Medical Malpractice? It occurs when the medical care (a health care provider - doctor, nurse, or hospital staff) falls below the appropriate standard of the medical profession. The practitioner or hospital staff member can make a stupid mistake because he or she is tired, distracted, or on prescription drugs himself or herself.

Has a medical care provider made a mistake in your case? Have you been hurt? You could get insurance money as a result of malpractice, even if you don't personally carry insurance.

Medical malpractice can be as complex as shaving an area (thereby nicking the skin which opens the patient to infections), failing to diagnose a disease, or as simple as failing to turn someone over in their hospital bed (causing bed sores or fluid retention).

EXAMPLES OF MEDICAL MALPRACTICE INCLUDE:
-giving the wrong medicine
-giving too much or too little of the medication
-leaving a tool or gauze in the body after surgery
-failure to properly diagnose a disease or medical condition
-failure to obtain informed consent before performing a procedure
-failure to provide appropriate treatment
-unreasonable delay in providing treatment
-failing to timely deliver a baby
-giving an improper interpretation of radiology films

INFECTIONS CAN BE CAUSED BY SHAVING INSTEAD OF CLIPPING

Some physicians pay attention to hair removal to cut surgical infections. Clip the hair before surgery because shaving will often cause a nick and infections may enter the skin. Houston neonatologist Michael Speer, MD, a member of the TMA Board of Trustees and chair of the Texas Patient Safety Alliance, says it's the "tyranny of small numbers." If physicians, nurses, hospital administrators, or others don't see large numbers of infections, they don't perceive that there is a problem.

Within the United States the rate of surgical site infections is statistically low, they still impact hundreds of thousands of patients each year.

Have you been hurt as a result of a hospital visit?

SURGICAL SITE INFECTIONS ARE A PROBLEM

According to a study published in 2004 by the National Surgical Infection Prevention Collaborative, surgical site infections complicate 780,000 operations annually in this country.

WHAT IS THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR MEDICAL MALPRACTICE?

The statute of limitations is a limit created by the legislature on the amount of time after the event in which you can bring a suit for any injuries suffered as a result of someone's negligence.

The statute of limitations is about two years from the time you discovered the medical malpractice. You need to check with a local malpractice attorney as soon as possible to check the statue of limitations for your state so you don't miss the deadline.

However, there are always exceptions to the limit if the case involves a child, a retained object, fraud, or concealment on the part of the health care provider.

Statutes of limitations can be difficult to calculate and you should consult medical malpractice attorneys before concluding that it is too late to pursue your case.