More Than a Simple Mistake: Medical Malpractice

As the old saying goes, “Everyone makes mistakes.” And, as unfortunate as it sounds, this includes medical professionals. Contrary to what we want to believe, even our doctors and surgeons are fallible and susceptible to human error. Usually, and thankfully, the mistakes they might make are insignificant and don’t harm anyone. Sometimes though, a mistake by a medical professional can cause serious injury and permanently alter the course of your life.

Not every mistake is malpractice. Medical malpractice happens when a doctor or other healthcare professional does something (or neglects to do something) that causes harm to the patient. They make a mistake that another competent professional would not make under the same circumstances. This is called standard of care—the accepted method that other medical professionals in the area with the same amount of experience and training would use to make a treatment decision. Malpractice means that your doctor didn’t provide proper standard of care, and you suffered injury or harm as a result.

Types of medical malpractice

Every case of malpractice is unique, of course. But we can break them down into several basic categories.

Misdiagnosis. A doctor might incorrectly diagnose a patient’s condition, resulting in lasting harm to the patient. One example might be a doctor diagnosing a patient with pneumonia when in fact they had lung cancer. The delay in treatment for the actual condition could cause severe harm and even death.

Failure to treat a condition. This often goes hand-in-hand with misdiagnosis. However, some doctors also fail to treat a condition or disease because they believe it will resolve itself over time, or they mistakenly believe the risk of treatment outweighs the benefits.

Surgical errors. This is a common area of medical malpractice and can happen in many different ways, under many different circumstances. Typical surgical errors include failure to use the most current techniques for a procedure, resulting in injury or complications. Other more uncommon incidents include leaving medical utensils or sponges inside a patient’s body.

Prescription errors. Prescription errors can also happen in any number of ways. A doctor may prescribe drugs without properly checking a patient’s allergies or contraindications. Or, if a patient is misdiagnosed, unnecessary medications can cause injury. Dosage errors can also cause serious harm.

Childbirth injuries. Not to be confused with birth defects, childbirth injuries are another common area of medical malpractice. Examples might be failure to detect and treat fetal distress, improper use of birthing tools, or failure to perform an emergency C-section.

If you or a loved one were a victim of medical malpractice, the attorneys at Bailey & Greer are ready to advocate and fight for you. We proudly serve the residents of Memphis, Jackson, and West Tennessee. Call us today at 901-680-9777 or complete our contact form to schedule a consultation with our experienced team.