Michigan Early Hospital Discharge Lawyer

A Michigan hospital early discharge lawyer can help if you or someone you care about was sent home prematurely from the hospital.

Patients are frequently harmed and even die when they are negligently discharged from a medical facility before they are medically stable and in good shape.

It may be medical malpractice if a patient is discharged too early from a hospital, emergency room, or out-patient medical procedure.

Hospitals push patients out prematurely for many reasons, but none are justifiable if the patient has a condition or illness that requires ongoing medical observation.

The experienced medical malpractice lawyers at The Buckfire Law Firm sue hospitals in early discharge medical malpractice lawsuits. Our team will review your chart to determine if you have a case.

What is an Unsafe or Early Hospital Discharge?
Common Types of Unsafe Early Hospital Discharges
Why Do Hospitals Discharge Patients Too Early?
Medical Conditions Associated with an Early Hospital Discharge
Can I Sue for an Early Hospital Discharge?

What is an Unsafe or Early Hospital Discharge?

An unsafe hospital discharge is when a patient is sent home too early despite the continuing need for medical treatment or medical observation.

The hospital has a moral duty and legal obligation to ensure it is safe to discharge a patient after an emergency room visit or hospitalization.

Patients may also be discharged too early to rehabilitation centers and nursing homes.

Under all circumstances, the patient should not be released until there is an assurance the condition has resolved or can be treated properly outside the hospital. Otherwise, a patient may suffer serious harm.

Common Types of Unsafe Early Hospital Discharges

A hospital may discharge a patient too early for many reasons. This may be a calculated medical decision, albeit the wrong decision, or due to hospital negligence.

Some common types of an early hospital discharge include the following:

Wrong diagnosis or misdiagnosis of a medical condition.
Failure to identify a serious complication after surgery.
Lack of proper diagnostic testing or misinterpreted lab results.
Failure to monitor vital signs and lack of observation.
Medical condition has not been properly treated.
Adverse reactions to medications and anesthesia.
The patient is not medically stable for discharge.
A patient does not have a suitable place for required care after discharge.
The patient was not provided with proper discharge instructions.

Why Do Hospitals Discharge Patients Too Early?

A hospital can try to justify an early hospital discharge in many ways. Many of the common reasons given for a premature hospital discharge include:

Issues with your health insurance paying for the hospitalization, like reaching coverage limits.
Inability of the patient to pay the medical bills related to a hospitalization.
Belief the patient can be medically treated suitably elsewhere.
Lack of bed availability
Belief the patient is medically stable for discharge home or to another facility.
Contention that the lab tests and other tests prove the patient was safe to be sent home.
Hospitals do not have the specialists to properly treat the condition.

However, none of these unsafe discharges is acceptable if the patient is not healthy enough to leave the medical facility.

When a patient is prematurely discharged and suffers injury or death, it can give rise to a medical malpractice lawsuit for damages caused by the negligent care.

Medical Conditions Associated with an Early Hospital Discharge

The medical malpractice attorneys at Buckfire Law handle cases involving early hospital discharges of patients. There is a wide range of medical conditions seen in these lawsuits, including:

Strokes, especially from hospital emergency departments.
Heart attacks.
Blood clots.
Pulmonary embolisms and deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
Post-surgical complications, like bowel perforations and leaks.
Bowel obstructions.
Ectopic pregnancy.
Medication errors and drug contradictions.
Infections and sepsis.
Bed sores and decubitus ulcers.

The consequences of an early hospital discharge can be catastrophic. The patient can suffer permanent and serious medical harm and require lengthy hospitalizations.

In the most severe cases, a patient can die after being sent home or to another facility too early from the hospital.

Can I Sue for an Early Hospital Discharge?

You can sue if your or someone you care about was harmed by an early hospital discharge. It is not enough to just show a patient was sent home too early. Rather, there must be some identifiable physical injury or harm caused by the premature discharge.

To prove your case, our award-winning Michigan medical malpractice lawyers will get your complete hospital chart. We will review your records to determine if a discharge was too early and if so, was the result of poor judgment and medical negligence. If your case meets the required legal criteria and can be supported by a physician, we will sue for medical malpractice on your behalf.

How Much are Settlements in an Early Hospital Discharge Lawsuit?

A settlement in an early hospital discharge lawsuit is based on several factors. No two medical malpractice cases are identical, so the settlement amount is based on the unique facts of each case.

Factors that go into determining the amount of compensation include the provable negligence of the doctors and hospital, the harm suffered by the patient, and the resulting economic losses.

Compensation can be demanded for physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, disability, and payment of medical expenses and lost income caused by the negligent hospital discharge.

Early Hospital Discharge Settlement Example

Buckfire Law represented a 63-year-old patient seen in the hospital for a severe headache and vision complaints. She was diagnosed with a migraine headache and discharged home. She suffered a debilitating stroke the following. We filed an early hospital discharge lawsuit and reached a settlement with the hospital for $975,000.00.