When Healing Hurts: Recognizing the Signs of Medical Malpractice

Medical treatment is a universal need, a universal factor in life around the world. How do you know if you may have been the victim of negligence in medical treatment? Medical treatment can often be exasperating and challenging and many courses of treatment don’t end up fixing the initial problem – and while that does not necessarily mean the doctor did something wrong, sometimes, the doctor is in the wrong. But how do you know if this happened? Attorneys like myself are familiar with many elements of medical practice and can help you sift through the facts to figure out if you might have a case. We use physicians to review your medical records and give expert opinions on what happened. There are some things you can keep in mind in deciding whether to seek out our legal services.

What is medical malpractice?

Let’s take a step back and talk about what medical malpractice is. Medical malpractice occurs when a doctor is negligent in treating a patient. However, there is a certain leeway to allow for human error. Additionally, for every medical treatment or procedure, there are what are called accepted risks, that is, things that can go wrong without the doctor doing anything negligent. The negligence of the doctor has to rise to the level of “breach of the standard of care.” For each medical specialty and each treatment or procedure, there is a “standard of care.”

Standards of care set forth certain things that have to be done in any treatment or procedure in order for such treatment or procedure to be done correctly. For example, doctors are supposed to administer antibiotics prior to almost any surgery (there are always exceptions) to stave off the risk of infection that comes with cutting someone’s body open. So, the administration of antibiotics preoperatively is often the standard of care. If a doctor doesn’t administer antibiotics preoperatively, that, in many situations, is a breach of the standard of care. Thus, if that standard is not met, then the doctor is said to have “breached the standard of care” or committed malpractice.   

Medical malpractice and you

The average person does not know the standard(s) of care for any treatment or procedure they undergo. So how can you know if you’ve been a victim of medical malpractice? 

The question to ask yourself first is: 

Did you (or your child) come out of a medical treatment or procedure with a result that you did not expect or that you did not previously discuss with your physician? 

Continued pain, relocated pain, decrease in mobility, or birth complications are just a few examples of things that can sometimes be the result of medical malpractice.

I want to note here that all of the above-cited examples could occur in a normal, properly performed treatment or procedure, as well as treatment or procedure done negligently. So how can you tell the difference? Often, you will not be able to. Consult with a lawyer to talk about what happened during your medical procedure or treatment is usually free, and that is an important step in identifying whether you were a victim of negligent medical care.

Helpful questions to ask yourself if your answer to the first question is yes, include the following:

• Did my doctor mention the possibility that this could happen before I (or my child) underwent the treatment or procedure? Specifically, or generally?
• Does this problem seem related to the treatment or procedure I (or my child) underwent, or not?
• Does this problem affect my (or the life of my child) life in a significant way? If so, how?

It’s important that the problem you’re having is affecting your life in a tangible, lasting way. It’s not enough that you think the doctor did something wrong. In order to have a successful lawsuit or claim against a doctor, you have to have incurred an injury that is measurable and truly affects your life. When a doctor commits negligence but nothing bad happens because of it, there is no lawsuit or claim.

As you try to understand the treatment or procedure you went through and any adverse effects thereafter, keep the perspective that sometimes bad things happen but no one did anything wrong. For example, a knee replacement patient can sometimes experience continued knee pain for up to one year after surgery even when everything was done properly. Keep your chin up as you go through medical struggles, but stay informed about your procedure, and consult an attorney if you think you may have been a victim of medical malpractice.

Holon Law Partners has 100+ years of experience combined guiding clients through complex cases and legal intricacies. Our approach is empathetic, customized, and client-centered with a focus on you and your unique business needs. To schedule a consultation with us, call our team at  (866) 372-0726 or email us at: info@holonlaw.com.