In any medical situation, we’re expected to put our trust and our health in the hands of medical professionals. While there are many circumstances in which everything goes perfectly fine, there are unfortunately some situations where things can go wrong. In the legal world, mistakes made by doctors, nurses, hospitals, and other healthcare professionals are called medical malpractice.
Some of these situations impact adults, while others can severely harm children. Our birth injury lawyers want you to understand what mistakes are most common in medical facilities, who is responsible, and what legal options you have to hold someone accountable when their negligence causes you harm.
Types of Medical Malpractice
Many situations can lead to medical malpractice, but there are some situations that are more common than others. The main types of medical malpractice we’ll detail below are:
- Birth injuries
- Surgical errors
- Misdiagnosis
- Prescription errors
- Environmental errors
- Care management errors
Birth Injuries
Pregnancy is supposed to be a joyous and exciting time for parents. Unfortunately, the entire situation can become marred when the doctor or another professional is negligent and causes your baby to suffer harm.
Some of the most common birth injuries stem from negligent actions such as:
- Failure to monitor: Even during the pregnancy, it is the doctor’s responsibility to properly monitor the mother and the fetus. This means checking for any signs of fetal distress and an irregular heartbeat. These two signs can indicate a problem such as umbilical cord prolapse or lack of oxygen to the baby’s brain.
- Improper use of birth-aiding tools: Although they are not used as much in modern medicine, some situations still require the use of forceps or vacuum extractors. It’s crucial for doctors to use these tools properly to ensure the baby doesn’t suffer harm.
- Failure to perform an emergency cesarean section: If there are any signs of fetal distress or if labor is prolonged significantly, the doctor must make a critical decision to protect the health of the mother and baby. If they fail to act, they can be held accountable for any birth injury stemming from the prolonged labor.
If you are pregnant, be sure your doctor is doing everything possible to ensure a safe and healthy pregnancy and delivery.
Surgical Errors
Surgical errors are some of the most common types of medical malpractice. They often result from misdiagnosis or lack of training in certain procedures. As a result, some of the most dangerous actions may occur, including the following:
- Doctors performing an operation on the wrong patient
- Doctors performing an operation on a patient’s incorrect body part
- Doctors or nurses leaving objects, such as scalpels, scissors, gauze, or sponges, inside a patient post-operation
- Anesthesiologists providing too little or too much medication
Misdiagnosis
Misdiagnosis occurs because of the many overlapping symptoms of various conditions. A cough can mean so many things, and it’s vital for doctors to thoroughly examine a patient to determine the exact condition or ailment. The doctor must also order tests to ensure they are eliminating similar conditions in an effort to provide the correct treatment. Misdiagnosis may occur when doctors are not trained in particularly specialized conditions. If you ever suffer a misdiagnosis, it may prevent you from receiving vital treatment. On the opposite side, you may be diagnosed with something when you’re perfectly healthy. This could result in you receiving treatment you don’t need.
Prescription errors
These types of errors go hand-in-hand with misdiagnosis. When a doctor misdiagnoses a condition, they may prescribe the wrong medication. There are numerous problems with this, including the following:
- The dosage prescribed may be too much, resulting in an accidental overdose.
- The dosage prescribed may be too little, resulting in the condition worsening rather than getting better.
- The prescription may interact adversely with current medications being taken.
- The prescription may cause allergic reactions–the doctor must ask if you are allergic to any medications.
Environmental errors
Environmental errors can include situations such as electrical problems, wrong gas, and other problems with the care of the actual facility. For instance, if an electrical problem exists and you try to plug something while admitted in the hospital, you can suffer an electrical burn if the current causes a shock at the point of contact. Wrong gas errors can include empty tanks, or oxygen lines that contain a gas other than oxygen.
Care management errors
Facilities must ensure they’re properly caring for patients. This means ensuring they have proper check-in schedules, assistance for fall risks, and more. One care management error that may arise is when a patient who cannot care for themselves or make certain decisions is released to a non-authorized person. This action essentially puts the patient in danger.
What You Can Do as a Medical Malpractice Victim
If you suffer due to the actions of a negligent medical professional, you must act quickly to pursue justice against the responsible party. You may be able to seek compensation for all damages you may sustain, including the costs of additional medical care, lost income from being unable to work, and your pain and suffering. You may also be able to include any mental trauma that impacts your ability to trust medical professionals in the future.
You should be able to trust your medical provider to care for you during a difficult time in your life. You don’t expect them to cause you more harm than good. Unfortunately, it does happen. However, you have the rights to move forward following medical malpractice. When you encounter this type of situation, it’s in your best interest to work with a legal professional who can advocate for your rights to receive proper compensation. You deserve justice, and working with an attorney dedicated to your needs can help you obtain it.
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