Law Articles - The Things You Don't Recognize About Malpractice Law Can Hurt You


by Jon Arnold - Date: 2009-11-09 - Word Count: 741 Share This!

The rate at which malpractice cases are rising in the United States is chilling. But the more chilling statistic is the list of individuals who have been a victim of medical malpractice and do not realize that they have legitimate rights according to malpractice law, and consequently do nothing about it. While it is true that a malpractice lawsuit will not correct damages or wrongful death, it can provide some financial rest to compensate for the conditions you may now be facing.

The basic item you need to realize is what medical malpractice is and is not. If you study the wording of malpractice law, it might seem somewhat} ambiguous but it in truth is not. This is when a doctor, physician, clinic or some type of health care professional behaves in negligence by mis-diagnosing symptoms, ordering the wrong medicinal drugs, or some other types of fundamental "oops" that causes damage, disfigurement, or even wrongful death in a patient that they have the duty of care for. But it is not something like a billing mistake, where your hospital bill might show a $100 charge for a bandaid; while that is ridiculous in itself and does occur, that is not malpractice.

Ordinarily prior to a patient undergoing an operation or some kind of treatment, the patient is expected to sign a waiver form. This is almost standard procedure anyplace. But most people believe that because they signed that waiver form, if something happens out of neglect, they have no rights. Nothing could be further from the truth. That waiver form that you signed does not lessen or eliminate your rights if something happens in that process that can be proved to be due to negligence, wrong medicines given, wrong procedures applied, etc. You still have rights according to medical malpractice law and that waiver does not negate those rights.

The best advice that can be provided is that anytime you are preparing to undergo a medical operation or procedure, keep a notebook or a diary where you enter the events. Record the date and time of each item, the physician or nurse's name, what is being done, and why they are doing what they plan to do. If something goes wrong down the road, you are not going to have a clear mind to go back and try to recall all these things, and such a diary will be a key component if your malpractice case ends up in court.

The burden of proof is on you, the patient or the family of the patient, which is where this notebook or diary is going to be needed. But if a malpractice lawyer, upon reviewing your case, can determine that you genuinely do have a legitimate lawsuit, it is really frequent and almost common these days for the hospital or physician to resolve the

lawsuit out of court. The grounds for this is because the physician or hospital does not want all the negative publicity that such a lawsuit would give them if it went to court. If they do not believe you have a valid lawsuit, it may end up going to court to be settled, but if you have all your facts and names in front of you, chances are high that it will not even get to a courtroom.

One more aspect is that you should not try to do this on your own. Get the services of an experienced and qualified malpractice lawyer. Attorneys such as this have the knowledge and expertise to show your lawsuit in the light necessary to get you the right resolution. If there is no settlement, you will in all probability not have to pay anything for the malpractice lawyer, as they generally take a portion of the settlement amount to cover their fees.

Malpractice law is rather particular and if you have been a victim of it, know that filing a suit will not make right the damage that was caused but it can make it easier for you to move forward in the future, while serving to determine that a corresponding mistake will not happen in the future. Do you have a valid medical practice suit or wonder if you are covered by malpractice law? Stop wondering and take action today. For more insights and additional information about Malpractice Law as well as finding resources to help you find a qualified malpractice lawyer, please visit our web site at http://www.malpracticeinfonow.com


Related Tags: medical malpractice, malpractice lawyer, malpractice attorney, malpractice law

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