You place a lot of trust in your healthcare providers to do the right thing and provide the best care possible. When this trust is broken and an injury or loss occurs, it’s not only devastating but may constitute medical malpractice. Unfortunately, medical malpractice claims are becoming more difficult to prove because medical cases are so complex.
An experienced personal injury lawyer understands the nuances of proving liability in a medical malpractice case. If you or a loved one have been harmed by a medical professional, here’s what you need to know about negligence.
Understanding Negligence
The legal definition of negligence is decidedly complex. It’s more than carelessness or failing to perform a duty. To prove negligence in a medical malpractice case, you must demonstrate each of the four legal elements of negligence.
- Duty of Care
This is the most straightforward element of negligence. For a doctor, nurse, or another healthcare provider to be negligent, you must first show that they had a duty to care for you or your loved one. Every healthcare provider is obligated to use their professional skills and judgment to provide reasonable medical care and advice. Duty of care for medical malpractice can be established with signed treatment agreements or simply by receiving care.
- Standard of Care
It is an expectation that healthcare providers and medical professions provide care that meets the standards established in that field. Since medical cases are complex, it can be difficult to determine the standard of care for any particular situation. A medical expert or team of medical experts helps establish the expected standard of care in your medical malpractice case. They can review your history, treatment, and results to determine if the care you received was outside of what is expected.
- Causation
Simply breaching the standard of care is not enough to prove negligence in a medical malpractice case. You must prove that the direct actions of the healthcare provider resulted in harm. In medical malpractice, omissions of care can also be causes of negligence. Missed diagnoses or failure to offer appropriate treatments can be direct causes of harm.
Causation also requires that harm caused by the medical professional was foreseeable. This means that a reasonable healthcare professional should have known that their actions, or lack of action, would lead to injury or loss. When a medical professional continues to act despite knowing that their actions can cause harm, that is negligence.
- Damages
Without the presence of damages, you cannot prove negligence. Damages include the costs of medical care, lost wages, psychological trauma, and more. This takes the harm or loss experienced by you and converts it into a financial sum. Since the injury is irreversible, monetary compensation is the way to hold medical professionals accountable for their actions.
Proving Negligence
There are many elements to proving negligence in a medical malpractice case. You should consult an experienced medical malpractice attorney early on to review your case and help you gather the evidence you need.
Gather Medical Records
Medical malpractice can occur in hospitals, ambulances, clinics, nursing homes, or other healthcare facilities. These facilities are required to keep records of the care they give to their patients. The first step for proving negligence will require obtaining medical records for the individual harmed by medical malpractice.
Medical records help establish the duty of care. They provide a record of the doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals involved. If you don’t have access to the medical records, a medical malpractice lawyer can help you obtain the necessary copies.
Your medical records also help establish the damages for your medical malpractice case. Damages include the cost of treatment and long-term needs resulting from the injuries. If you’ve suffered an injury due to medical negligence, it’s crucial to seek a second opinion to determine your prognosis and treatment plan. This information will be used to determine the damages for your case.
Consult Experts
Medical malpractice cases are often complex. The complexity of the human body and the level of expertise necessary to understand injuries requires that your attorney consults medical experts to establish negligence in medical malpractice cases. These professionals are essential for determining the standard of care and the expectation that your healthcare provider should have foreseen the harm their actions would cause.
You want the best medical experts on your side. As a reputable personal injury lawyer in South Florida, Jesse Davidson has the connections you need to get the right team on your side. By working with him early in your medical malpractice case, you can avoid delays in establishing the evidence that a medical provider acted outside of the standard of care to cause you or your loved one harm.
Medical experts help establish appropriate expectations for damages. They can review treatment recommendations and compare your case to similar conditions to establish just how harmful your medical provider’s negligence was.
Start Early
The law requires that you pursue medical malpractice cases promptly. In Florida, there is a two-year statute of limitations on medical malpractice cases. This means you have two years from the time of the negligent care to file your lawsuit. There are exceptions for delayed discovery.
It can take time to gather everything you need to file your medical malpractice lawsuit. By beginning the process early, you protect yourself from running out of time. It’s not necessary to have all the answers when you start the process. Your knowledgeable attorney can help guide you along the way. Together, you can gather all the evidence needed to prove your case without rushing to meet a deadline for the statute of limitations.
Contact a Top Medical Malpractice Attorney TodayOur La
Get the help you need to prove negligence in your medical malpractice case. JD Injury Law, has over a decade of experience representing individuals just like you. He understands your difficult situation and will work with you to ensure the process is as smooth and straightforward as possible. He’ll advocate for you in court to make sure you receive the compensation you deserve.
If you or a loved one have been injured, an experienced attorney can prove invaluable for your case. Contact Jesse Davidson at (561) 252-7850 to schedule a no-obligation, free consultation. You’ll get his expert opinion on your case and guidance on how to move forward.
