To schedule a consultation with a malpractice attorney, you need to familiarize yourself with malpractice and how it is defined. For any case to be categorized as a medical malpractice lawsuit, it needs to meet certain criteria.
Defining a Malpractice Case
When you sit down with a medical malpractice law attorney in Harrisburg, IL, you will be able to learn more about proving your case. Generally, for a case to be considered a malpractice case, it should feature following characteristics:
- The standard of care was violated. The law recognizes certain medical standards for treating patients. These standards are generally held as acceptable by a medical professional. Therefore, a patient has a right to expect that his or her care will follow these standards.
- An injury resulted from negligence. For a medical malpractice case to be valid, the patient must also show that he or she sustained an injury when the standard of care was not followed. Therefore, a malpractice law attorney must prove that the negligence led to the patient’s injury.
- The injury resulted in substantial damages. Medical malpractice lawsuits are expensive to litigate. Therefore, for the claim to stand up in court, the attorney must also prove that the damages were extensive. If the damages are small, the expense involved in pursuing the case may be greater than what a patient can recover.
Medical Malpractice Examples
A malpractice law attorney can elaborate further on examples of medical malpractice. For instance, malpractice may be defined by the following:
- A failure to recognize the symptoms
- A failure to order the necessary testing
- Misreading the lab results
- An unnecessary surgical procedure
- An improper dosage
- A premature discharge from the hospital
- Poor aftercare or follow-up
- Surgical errors
Make an Appointment Today
As you can see, medical malpractice can happen for a variety of reasons. To learn more about discussing this type of case, contact us for an appointment today.