How To Make A Claim For Medical Negligence Compensation

When a doctor, nurse or other professional health care provider does not give the accepted standard of practice expected by the medical community, and through this lack of care or omission causes injury or death, it is considered medical negligence. Regulations may vary in districts within a particular country. Professional health care providers may also include dentists, midwives and therapists. If it can be proved in court, the plaintiff will get medical negligence compensation.

There are four main things that the plaintiff needs to prove:

1. The medical care was owed. If a person is admitted to a hospital or clinic for treatment, there is a legal duty for the health care providers of the institutions to care for the person to the required medical standards.

2. When the duty is established, it has to be proved that the duty was breached. The health care provider did not give the required standard of care.

3. It must be proved that the breach of duty caused an injury or death.

4. There must be damages or losses caused by the breach. They can be pecuniary or emotional, but the basis for medical negligence claims is damages.

If a person has experienced negligence or a family member has suffered or died from negligence, they may pursue a medical negligence claim. There are several steps to making a claim and one step needs to be met correctly before the next step can be taken. First, the medical records of the plaintiff need to be checked by a specialist medical expert who will determine if the treatment was negligent and, if so, if it did any damage.

If medical negligence is determined, court proceedings should start immediately. Medical negligence cases are most often settled out of court by negotiation but only after beginning court action.

A claim is very complex and difficult to pursue because it depends on the evidence of medical experts who are supported by medical texts and papers. This usually requires extensive research. A medical negligence solicitor is essential if a patient wants to pursue negligence.

Medical negligence solicitors should be chosen on the basis of experience in the field. They will have extensive knowledge of this area and should have a record of successful cases. If the case does go to court, they must have experience in this kind of litigation. In court, the medical experts will undergo rigorous cross examination by counsel for the defence, and the solicitor should be able to prepare the expert for this.

Medical negligence claims are not easy to pursue. They have dire consequences for the patient and are different from other types of compensation cases. The rewards are often large and defendants will work hard to deny the charges. Solicitors need to specialize in this area and have experience winning cases.

A good solicitor will be a member of The Law Society experts who are specialized in medical negligence and undergo continuous training. They will offer patients who qualify a Legal Aid scheme or a no win no fee scheme. Not all solicitors are authorised to use the Legal Aid scheme. The solicitor should be available to discuss the case and work directly with the patient. The patient's suffering may include psychological damage, reduced employment possibilities and loss of amenities of life. Compensation may include loss of income, payment of medical bills, legal expenses.

Anyone who feels that they have not received the best standard of care from a medical professional, and because of that have been injured or damaged in some way has the right to approach a solicitor and make a claim for compensation.

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Burn Treatment Negligence

Burn Treatment Negligence

Burn injuries are one of the most painful and devastating injuries that one can have. It can take a great deal of time to recover from this kind of injury if the burn was extensive and severe. It is highly recommended that you seek medical care as soon as possible after your burn accident. Skilled medical professionals can reduce the effects of your burn and help to eliminate the pain. However, some doctors and nurses make negligent errors when treating a burn that results in more pain and suffering for the patient.

When patients are forced to experience unnecessary pain and suffering because of medical negligence, this is inexcusable. Fortunately, the law offers a way for victims of medical negligence to pursue compensation for any losses they have suffered. If you or a loved one visited the hospital for burn treatment and you believe that things were worsened because of staff negligence or carelessness, speak with a medical malpractice attorney in your area today about the incident.

Elements Required to Prove Medical Negligence

In a court of law, it is necessary to prove certain elements if you suspect that negligence played a role during your burn injury treatment. These include:

Proof of injury resulting directly from the doctor's negligent acts Proof that the doctor did not act professionally, or that a "reasonable" doctor in the same position would have acted differently Proof that lost wages and medical costs stemmed straight from the doctor's alleged careless acts

Filing a lawsuit for compensation from a medical professional or facility can be a difficult and confusing task. You need experienced legal assistance in order to make a strong case for the compensation you need following a burn injury treatment error.

Contact Us

Contact the Kenosha injury attorneys of Habush Habush & Rottier to discuss your case today, free of charge.

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Are You a Victim Of Emergency Room Negligence?

Because of the large number of patients that flow through an emergency room on a daily basis, many of whom are in serious or critical condition, along with a common lack of staff, hospital emergency rooms are prime breeding ground for mistakes. A recent study conducted by Harvard University looked at the records of more than thirty thousand hospital emergency rooms, all of which were randomly selected. The study concluded that this department of the hospital was more prone to negligence than any other area of the institution. The most common issues came from misdiagnoses or incorrect treatments being administered, mostly due to staff that is inexperienced and only in the department part time.

Emergency rooms by nature depend on very quick and precise treatments. Depending on the exact condition, a physician on staff may be required to treat on the spot, or refer the patient to a more qualified specialist. Time cannot be wasted in this department. Unfortunately, some patients end up leaving the emergency room with long term side effects such as pain, loss of function, or even death, which could have been avoided if proper, prompt treatment was administered by a competent doctor.

According to the above mentioned Harvard University study, the amount of time patients spend waiting in an emergency room has increased significantly. The average wait time for emergency room patients to see a doctor in 2006 was approximately thirty minutes. This was a shocking increase from 1997, when wait time averaged about twenty two minutes. Even more astonishing, the wait time for serious issues also rose significantly. The average wait time for a heart attack patient in 1997 was just eight minutes, by 2006, the average wait time rose to twenty two minutes.

Not only are wait times in emergency rooms becoming negligent, other mistakes and oversights by medical professionals have become a major issue of concern for patients. The most commonly occurring type of emergency room mistakes include the following:

• A incorrect or late diagnosis; • An improper or incomplete evaluation of the patient's condition; • Blood transfusions that are contaminated; • Wrong medications being prescribed; • A lack of patient monitoring, especially for patients who appear to be confused; • Incomplete or incorrect laboratory tests; • Errors in surgical procedures; • Improper reading of patient information and charts; • Medication and allergy issues.

While most people prefer not to go to the emergency room, and if at all possible prefer to treat their injury or illness at home, there are times it is absolutely essential to seek medical treatment from an urgent care facility. When this happens, patients have a reasonable expectation of receiving prompt attention and proper treatment. Yet, there are many times this does not happen, and there is a major failure on the part of medical staff, doctors, hospital administrators, and lab technicians, which can result in serious injury or death.

In fact, hospital administrators are often the most responsible party in an emergency room setting. These professionals are required to have a proper staff on hand at all times, and this staff must be equipped to handle the demands of a hectic situation. There must be enough doctors on staff, nurses on staff, and technicians in test facilities available to meet all urgent care needs. If a hospital administrator does not take the time to adequately screen staff, hire workers with the proper amount of experience, or administer adequate training, patient treatment may suffer. The administrator must make sure that there is sufficient staff at all times, day and night, to handle a variety of cases.

A hospital administrator is basically the leader of the emergency room team, and needs to make sure all emergency situations can be handled with ease, and that there no patients who may be overlooked or left waiting for treatment. If a patient is forgotten about and treatment is delayed, or a doctor is not notified as to the severity of a patient's condition, very serious consequences may result. Therefore, it is essential that all staff members remain organized, centered, and keep track of patients.

Because the doctors who work in emergency rooms are often forced to work long hours under a good amount of pressure, these facilities can get a bit crazy at times. Doctors are often forced to diagnose, treat, and release patients quickly to keep the flow moving, and to help others. While this is an acceptable practice, it is also necessary to treat accurately and responsibly.

If you or someone you know has suffered any type of injury due to a negligent member of an emergency room staff, you may be entitled to receive compensation for your medical expenses, pain and suffering, along with other types of damages. It is very important that you contact a medical malpractice attorney who specializes in the area of medical negligence or malpractice as soon as possible to start preparing your case.

Medical malpractice attorneys are quite skilled in this area, have a wide range of resources, and work hard to get you the results you need in order to move forward with your life. Doctors and hospitals have teams of attorneys working hard on their side to protect their interests and so should you.

Do not wait to contact an attorney about your case. Many states have statues of limitations, so it is very important that you act quickly following your injury. Your attorney will interview members of the medical staff that were present at the time of your treatment, collect records, interview other medical professionals, and file all of the proceedings on your behalf. You can rest assured your case will be handled with the utmost professionalism and care. All you will have to do is concentrate on healing and getting well.

Since most medical malpractice attorneys work on a contingency basis, there is no upfront fee required. This means that you incur no initial expense, and simply pay a portion of your judgment once your case has completely settled.

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What To Ask Medical Malpractice Lawyers

What do you ask medical malpractice lawyers when you have been injured by a medical provider and you are trying to find the right lawyer? Here are several suggestions.

First, you need to find a lawyer who is experienced, knowledgeable, and willing to actually try a case in court. Next, you want a lawyer who will be honest with you. Finally, you need to know how much the lawyer will charge and how expenses associated with the case will be paid.

Experience & Knowledge

Medical malpractice lawsuits are complex, but jurors who decide the cases are not medical experts. They are lay people. You need a lawyer who is knowledgeable and understands medical treatment and who can explain the treatment in normal, easy to understand terms.

If you have researched your medical problem, you may ask the lawyer about your medical problem to see how familiar he/she is with it. Does the lawyer understand why you feel that there may have been malpractice? Can the lawyer explain other potential causes for your medical problem? Has the lawyer handled other cases involving your medical problem or similar medical problems?

Willingness To Try A Case

This aspect may seem silly. All lawyers try cases don't they? Actually, the answer is no! Some lawyers give a good talk, but they really do not try court cases. Instead, they do everything that they can to settle lawsuits. The reason that this is important is that when a lawyer will not try cases, insurance companies know it, and will give low ball offers knowing that the lawyer will accept a low offer rather than go to court.

When talking with medical malpractice lawyers, ask them questions like: How many medical malpractice cases have your tried in court? When was the last time you tried a medical malpractice case in court? How long does a malpractice trial last? Whatever you ask, you are looking to make sure that the lawyer will, in fact, "go to court".

Honesty

Despite all of the lawyer jokes, most lawyers are honest. But there are some who will misrepresent facts to get what they want. You need a lawyer who is honest with you when trying to get your business and who is honest with you as your case progresses.

One of the easiest questions is to ask how much your medical malpractice case is worth. If the lawyer gives you some fairly specific dollar amount or a small range of dollars, the lawyer may be less than honest. At the beginning, no one can really tell what your case is worth because so much depends on the facts of your case (the facts in every case are different), and, at the beginning, the lawyer doesn't know all of the facts. An honest lawyer will tell you that he/she just cannot say at the beginning what your case is worth. In fact, the lawyer will probably tell you that first, the lawyer must make sure that you do have a case.

Lawyer Fees And Costs

When talking with medical malpractice lawyers, be sure to ask them how much they charge, what costs there will be, and when are the fees and costs paid. You need a clear understanding of the dollar amounts that you will be expected to pay.

This is general information only. If you have any questions whatsoever about medical malpractice lawyers, talk with a lawyer licensed in your state.

This article may be republished, but the wording must not be changed and the author links must remain active.

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Cerebral Palsy - The Causes and How To Claim Compensation

Cerebral Palsy is caused by injury to the brain and not, as many people think, an illness or disease. Cerebral palsy affects one in 400 children every year and can be caused in a number of ways.

The most common causes of cerebral palsy, often abbreviated to CP, are a lack of oxygen to a baby's brain, blocked blood vessels, infection in the mother, multiple or premature birth and trauma during labour or the birth itself.

Sufferers of the neurological condition will have problems with posture, movement and coordination. There are varying degrees of severity and three different types of cerebral palsy.

Each of these relates to different areas of the brain that has been damaged. Ataxic Cerebral Palsy will result in the sufferer experiencing balance problems, as well as irregular speech and shaky hand movement. Those with Athetoid Cerebral Palsy will display a loss of posture control and may also make unwanted movement. Spastic Cerebral Palsy sufferers may have weak and / or stiff muscles, which is particularly noticeable when pressure is applied. Movement control may also be affected.

Around 10% of cases are caused by birth complications, some of which can be the result of poor obstetric management by a doctor, nurse or midwife. It is these cases where claims can possibly be made for compensation.

Experienced medical negligence solicitors, usually operating on a no win, no fee basis and offering Legal Aid in order to pay for the claim, are best placed to help families who want to pursue a compensation claim.

The solicitor will be able to investigate the circumstances surrounding the claim and determine whether or not there is a case worth pursuing. If there is, they will gather the necessary evidence to build a case against the defendant, whether that is a hospital or individual.

There are likely to be many questions to ask and decisions to make through the course of building a medical negligence case, especially one as sensitive as a cerebral palsy case. The right solicitor with the right experience and expertise will be able to advise a family on the best course of action for them, taking each case individually and on its own merits.

It is therefore important that a family chooses the right solicitor to suit them. The best recommendation is word of mouth from someone who has experience with a particular solicitor. Whether this is someone you know or from the various review sites on the internet, getting opinions is a good idea.

Cost is also a consideration - although many work on a no win, no fee basis, it is worth finding out what percentage of any compensation they will take should the case be successful. Find the level of service, the highest best reputation and the lowest percentage cut you can and you will have found the perfect solicitor for you.

Successful cerebral palsy compensation claims have often been in the millions of pounds and while it is not about the money, claiming compensation can really help out in the care and future of both the sufferer and the carers.

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OB/GYN Negligence

Most people assume that when they visit a medical professional, they will receive the care they need without any problems or complications. Unfortunately, this is not always true. Every year thousands of people fall victim to the negligence of medical professionals and thousands of people file personal injury lawsuits as a result.

Irresponsible behavior amongst medical professionals in the OB/GYN field is particularly dangerous. This form of medical malpractice can injure not only a woman, but her child, as well. Although medical mistakes in this field are less common than in some other medical fields, the effects of OB/GYN negligence can be absolutely devastating.

A doctor or other medical professional can make serious mistakes before, during, or after the birth of a child. Doctors and nurses in this field need to see their patients frequently. It is important that pregnant women visit the doctor regularly during a pregnancy for many different reasons. Constant attention is the best way to identify potential problems early on and monitor a baby's growth. If a medical professional is blatantly negligent during this time, they may fail to identify treatable complications in a timely manner. They may also incorrectly diagnose a condition, resulting in unnecessary and potentially harmful treatment.

There are also a wide range of mistakes that can arise during the birth of a child. Misuse of forceps can cause the mother to have a cervical injury. If forceps are used in incorrectly on a child, the child may have permanent brain damage. Carelessness during a c-section is also a threat. Incorrectly performed c-sections can result in lacerations to a newborn baby. The mother is also at risk of developing serious infections if proper post-op care is not administered. An incorrectly performed vacuum delivery can cause nerve damage, scalp bruising, or serious scarring.

Fortunately, those who have suffered due to the inexcusable negligence of a medical professional may be able to pursue justice through a personal injury lawsuit.

Litigating the Brain Damaged Baby Case From the Initial Interview to Trial   What Is Medical Negligence and What Does It Mean for You?   Learn What Medical Malpractice Really Is   Failure to Diagnose Cancer Case - How Does It Work?   Nursing Care Malpractice (Part I)   The Complicated World of Expert Affidavits in Minnesota Medical Malpractice Cases