When you or a loved one seek medical care, whether for an emergency or a routine procedure, you never think you may need a medical malpractice attorney in Dallas. Unfortunately, medical mistakes are more common than most people realize. At our firm, we are here to help if you or a loved one had been harmed due to a preventable medical error. We will investigate every aspect of your case and work to secure any compensation you are entitled to.
What are the most common Dallas medical mistakes?
When researchers from Johns Hopkins University came out with a report a few years ago that said medical errors were the third leading cause of death in the country, most people were shocked. While people knew that medical mistakes occurred, they did not know that approximately 250,000 deaths were caused by medical errors each year in the United States. That is an astounding number, but even that estimate may be low. Some researchers say that the number may be closer to 400,000 deaths caused by medical mistakes annually.
Keep in mind that those are just the deaths that occur due to medical mistakes. Many millions more are injured due to these errors and are left dealing with the consequences.
With many prominent and well-known medical facilities in and around the Dallas area, it is important to look at the most common medical mistakes that occur:
- Errors with prescription medications (wrong medication, wrong dosage, not giving medication at all).
- Inadequate information flow among healthcare providers.
- Mistakes made during surgical procedures.
- Inadequate policies in place to prevent the spread of infections in a health care setting.
- A misdiagnosis or a missed diagnosis.
- Failure to treat a patient’s condition.
- Delayed treatment for an injury or illness.
Looking more in-depth at our Dallas Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Our Dallas medical malpractice lawyer team at our firm is ready to help with a multitude of medical mistake cases because we believe in standing up for the rights of victims.
- Medical Negligence: The term “medical negligence” is often used interchangeably with the term “medical malpractice.” However, medical negligence refers to a healthcare professional failing to provide treatment in line with the standard of care that a similarly trained professional would administer in a similar situation.
- Defective Medical Products: Medical devices are classified based on their level of intrusion into a patient’s body, and they must be approved by the FDA. However, even approved medical devices can become defective due to an unknown design flaw. When this occurs, a patient can sustain severe infections, adverse reactions, and even death.
- Surgical Errors: Surgical errors are often called “never events” because they consist of mistakes that should never be made in medicine. The outcome of a surgical error is regularly devastating, if not fatal. There are various medical mistakes that can lead to severe patient harm, including performing surgery on the wrong body part or amputating the wrong limb, operating on the wrong patient, causing nerve damage during surgery, accidentally leaving surgical tools or foreign objects in a patient’s body, incorrectly administering anesthesia or other medications during surgery, and more.
- Elder Abuse: Most people do not think of medical mistakes when they hear the term “elder abuse,” but the reality is that medical mistakes often affect the elderly population. Unfortunately, medical mistakes are often covered up and blamed on the “aging process,” as opposed to mistakes. This is not right, and a Dallas medical malpractice attorney will stand up for the rights of the elderly.
- Nursing Home Abuse: There are various forms of abuse that can occur in a nursing home setting, including abuse centered on medical mistakes and medical neglect. Nursing home staff regularly treat residents with an inadequate standard of care, including failing to treat wounds, failing to provide proper physical therapy, and failing to properly administer medications.
- Cosmetic/Plastic Surgery Errors: Plastic surgery is sought by patients for both cosmetic purposes and for those seeking to restore functionality and appearance after an injury. Unfortunately, reports indicated that errors made during plastic surgery procedures often result in severe patient scarring, nerve damage, organ damage, infections, deep vein thrombosis, heavy blood loss, and more.
- Misdiagnosis: Researchers at Johns Hopkins have said that diagnostic errors cause more patient harm than any other type of medical mistake. These errors commonly occur when medical professionals fail to listen to or recognize patient symptoms, are inadequately trained, fail to properly follow-up or examine test results, and more.
- Failure to Diagnose: A failure to diagnose a patient is similar to a misdiagnosis, but the results are often much worse. When a medical professional fails to diagnose a patient’s injury or condition, then that patient often goes without any medical care for their symptoms. When a diagnosis is finally made, it is often too late to prevent serious disabilities or death.
Healthcare professionals and the standard of care
When there has been a relationship established between a medical professional and a patient, then the medical professional owes a certain standard of care to the patient. Medical professionals owe the level of skill, expertise, and care that another adequately trained healthcare professional would provide in the same situation.
If it has been determined that a medical professional failed to provide an adequate standard of care to a patient, this could constitute medical negligence, resulting in liability for any patient harm that occurred paid.
Our team will help secure the compensation you need
If you or somebody you love has been injured due to a preventable medical mistake, contact an Dallas medical malpractice lawyer as soon as possible. At our firm, our qualified and experienced medical malpractice lawyer in Dallas will investigate every aspect of your case in order to secure the compensation you deserve. For medical malpractice cases, this could include:
- Coverage of all medical bills that resulted from the mistake
- Lost wages if the victim is unable to work
- Physical therapy or rehabilitation costs
- Loss of enjoyment of life damages
- Pain and suffering damages
Our Dallas medical malpractice attorney will also pursue punitive damages against any health care professional that was grossly negligent or acted maliciously. When you need a medical malpractice attorney in Dallas, you can contact us for a free consultation of your case by clicking here or by calling us at 214-295-2900.