Want to Sue for Medical Malpractice?

You can sue any licensed medical provider that caused you harm due to a medical error.  This can include a doctor, nurse, technician, and other medical professionals.

In many cases, there are multiple people who committed medical malpractice.  For example, a patient may die in surgery due to negligence by both a surgeon and anesthesiologist.  In that situation, you would file medical malpractice claims against both physicians.

The phrase “standard of care” refers to the required medical treatment that should be provided to a patient under the circumstances.  This is determined by the factors surrounding any treatment or diagnosis and then measured against what a competent physician would do under the same or similar circumstances.  In most malpractice lawsuits, the parties disagree on whether or not the defendants breached, or violated, the standard of care for the plaintiff in the lawsuit.

Damage caps are limits on the amount of money a patient can get in a medical malpractice case.  These are determined by state laws, or statutes, and are different in each state.  They are artificial limits implemented to keep settlements and jury verdicts down.

Unfortunately, they only harm patients who have been the most harmed by medical mistakes and errors.  Those with the most serious injuries have their damages limited and rarely receive appropriate compensation.  Caps generally apply to pain and suffering damages and not financial losses.

There are no guidelines or schedules that set how much money a medical malpractice case is worth.  Every case depends on its own unique circumstances and the harm suffered by the patient.  In addition, the financial losses, like medical bills and lost wages, are never the same in two cases.  As a result, each case is weighed on its own merits to determine the fair amount of a settlement.

You were likely required to sign a Patient Consent Form before any treatments, procedures, or surgeries.  These forms state the potential risks of the procedure and you acknowledge that you understand them.  After all, there are risks to procedures and injuries happen in the absence of medical negligence.

However, you never consent or agree to medical malpractice.  So, a patient who suffers harm due to a medical error, and not just a bad outcome, can still file a medical malpractice lawsuit.