Medical malpractice is the cause of thousands of injuries every year. Many of these injuries come off as common complications, and many of the injuries are not severe enough for a doctor to be held accountable for what happened. However, when patients suffer serious injuries, when their conditions get worse, and when they pass away because of negligent medical care, these victims and their families might be entitled to substantial compensation.
The Berks County, PA medical malpractice lawyers at Reiff Law Firm represent medical malpractice victims and their families in injury lawsuits against doctors, hospitals, and other health care providers for negligent care and malpractice. For help with your potential case, call our lawyers to set up a free consultation and learn more about what we can do to help. Call us today at (215) 709-6940.
How to Recognize Medical Malpractice at Berks County Hospitals and Doctor’s Offices
Berks County is home to multiple medical facilities, with thousands of patients seeking treatment every day. Many of these patients will face complications, and it is always difficult to tell whether those complications are normal or whether they only occurred because of mistakes and errors committed by the medical team.
Telling the difference between normal, everyday complications and medical negligence is at the core of many medical malpractice claims. For a successful medical malpractice claim, you must prove that the medical care provider did something wrong that resulted in your injuries or worsened condition. This act or omission must fall below the “standard of care” – the reasonable level of care that a doctor would provide under the given circumstances. If your doctor did everything right and you were still injured, it is likely a normal complication – but if there were unreasonable errors or mistakes that led to the injury, you could be a victim of medical malpractice.
The best way to tell whether what you experienced was malpractice or a normal complication is to ask a doctor. Your initial doctor might not be truthful with you if they know they did something wrong, and they might try to actively cover up any fault. This means that getting a second opinion from another doctor is often the best way to tell if you suffered negligent care. Another doctor can examine your medical records and determine whether the care you received followed the standard of care or not – and if it did not, you might be entitled to sue the doctor who treated you negligently.
Talk to a Berks County medical malpractice lawyer immediately to get your case filed. There might be strict deadlines you need to follow.
Examples of Medical Malpractice in Berks County, PA
Medical malpractice can take many forms. While some errors and mistakes – such as surgical errors – might be more visible or obvious, many instances of medical malpractice involve diagnosis and treatment plans.
Surgical errors occur infrequently, but when they do occur, victims could face serious injuries. Nicked arteries and nerves can leave patients bleeding dangerously or suffering from nerve damage that hinders movement and recovery. Other surgical errors could involve leaving items behind inside the patient during surgery or even performing the wrong surgical procedure by mixing up patients.
Problems with other care, such as anesthesia, follow-up care, and post-op infection prevention, can also involve medical malpractice. Anesthesia errors could leave a patient awake and aware during surgery, causing immense pain. Alternatively, a patient might not awake after anesthesia, suffering injuries, coma, or death. Negligent follow-up care could mean leaving sutures in too long, failing to change bandages, and failing to clean surgical sites, among other problems. Negligent post-op care could also allow the patient to get an infection, potentially requiring additional surgery or wound care to treat the infection site.
Many cases of malpractice occur in the early stages of treatment. Patients whose conditions and complaints are not taken seriously often find themselves without a diagnosis or with an incorrect diagnosis. When failure to diagnose or misdiagnosis issues arise, the patient’s underlying condition goes untreated and could get worse. They could also receive unnecessary treatment that makes them sick, such as chemotherapy. If a doctor fails to diagnose serious conditions like a heart attack or cancer, the patient could die.
Other mistakes involve care from medical professionals other than doctors. Medical malpractice could be committed by nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, technicians, and other medical professionals. Often, Berks County medical malpractice cases are filed against the hospital and the individual practitioner since many of these individuals could be hospital employees.
Talk to our Berks County medical malpractice lawyer about your suspected negligent care to learn more about whether it falls into a common category of medical malpractice and for help understanding whom to sue for your injuries.
Damages for Medical Malpractice in Berks County
The damages that you can receive in a lawsuit for medical malpractice cover any economic and noneconomic harms you faced because of the negligent care.
First, you could need additional medical care to correct mistakes your previous doctor or medical practitioner committed. This could be expensive, and it might not have been necessary if your doctor did the right thing from the outset. This care should be covered in a medical malpractice lawsuit in Berks County.
Second, any medical malpractice results that keep you from working or being able to return to work will result in lost wages. These wages can be compensated in a medical malpractice lawsuit.
Lastly, the pain and suffering you faced from the negligent care could be compensated. This can be one of the biggest areas of damages that you receive in your case, so talk to a Philadelphia medical malpractice lawyer about what these pain and suffering damages might be worth.
Talk to a lawyer for help calculating damages and understanding what compensation you can claim in your medical malpractice case in Berks County.
Call Our Medical Malpractice Attorneys in Berks County for a Free Consultation
Victims of medical malpractice and the families of those whose lives were lost to negligent medical care deserve compensation for the pain and suffering and other damages that they faced. For help with your potential case and help identifying medical malpractice in your care, call the Reiff Law Firm today. Our Berks County, PA medical malpractice lawyer represents injured victims and fights hospitals, doctors, and other medical practitioners to get injured patients the compensation they need. For a free case consultation, call us today at (215) 709-6940.
