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What is the Definition of Medical Negligence?

Medical negligence is also known as medical malpractice, or medmal for short. It’s a term referring to any actions a medical provider takes that fall outside of what the profession sees as appropriate under the circumstances.

For a medical malpractice lawsuit to be possible, the medical professional’s actions or omission of action must result in the patient sustaining an injury. What this means is that failure to do what is in the best interest of the patient is not a legal mishap on its own. The patient must experience some form of injury or illness from that improper care.

To succeed in a medical negligence lawsuit, you must prove:

1. The medical professional had a duty of care for the patient.
2. That duty of care was not carried out.
3. The medical professional’s breach caused the patient’s injury.
4. There is clear causation between the medical professional’s negligence and the patient’s resulting injury.

Establishing Medical Negligence

In the courtroom or mediation, you must prove negligence in which the medical provider failed to offer treatment in accordance with “medical standard of care.” Medical standard of care is defined as the care that the average and reasonable medical community would offer given the exact same circumstances.

A medical professional can be a doctor, nurse, dentist, surgeon, or other professional that offers any form of medical care. Medical negligence can happen in a variety of circumstances. For example, it can come in the form of recommending a service or surgery that the patient does not actually need—or missing a diagnosis and treatment for a patient that another medical professional would notice if placed in the same situation.

Moving from Negligence to Medical Malpractice

Negligence transitions from a simple oversight or error to medical malpractice when the patient experiences injury such as worsening symptoms or condition, complications from treatment, or additional medical treatment that would otherwise be unnecessary if the doctor had administered proper treatment.

In these cases, injury does not necessarily refer to a new ailment, but can also be defined as any worsening symptoms.

Hiring a Miami Negligence Attorney

Medical professionals and their employers are often unwilling to admit to fault in medical negligence cases. When they don’t admit to fault, it leaves the patient with hefty medical bills, and sometimes conditions that will be expensive to manage in the long-term. These expenses can cause undue burden on their finances.

To get justice for the medical professional’s wrongdoing, you should hire a Miami negligence lawyer to represent your case in court or with mediation. A lawyer will work with you to gather evidence and build a case to prove negligence. These two factors are crucial to earning a settlement that will cover your medical expenses and pain and suffering from the experience.

Even in cases where the medical professional is willing to negotiate, you’re unlikely to receive compensation for your pain and suffering in such negotiations. Plus, you might need to seek lost wages and other damages that a lawyer can help you calculate and pursue.

Contact Friedman Trial Lawyers to discuss your medical malpractice case and learn more about how we can help you.

-Marvin

Mon Jun 24, 9:00am