Misdiagnosis And Delayed Diagnosis Are Life Threatening Forms Of Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice involving misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis occurs when a healthcare professional a doctor incorrectly diagnoses a patient’s condition or fails to timely diagnose a condition. Misdiagnosis happens when a doctor incorrectly identifies a patient’s illness, potentially resulting in inappropriate or harmful treatments. For example, diagnosing a malignant tumor as benign, or mistaking a heart attack for indigestion  can have severe consequences.

Delayed diagnosis, on the other hand, occurs when a healthcare provider takes an excessive amount of time to diagnose a condition, such as meningitis or sepsis, which can lead to the worsening of the patient’s health.

Both forms of malpractice can stem from a variety of factors, including:

• Inadequate patient evaluation
• Insufficient medical knowledge
• Failure to interpret diagnostic tests accurately

These errors can have profound impacts on patients’ lives, ranging from prolonged suffering and emotional distress to severe physical harm or even death. Patients who experience these issues may seek legal action to gain compensation for their suffering and to hold healthcare providers accountable.

Other Forms Of Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice involves poor care on the part of a doctor, nurse, or members of their staff and a failure to meet the standard of care, resulting in harm to the patient. Medical malpractice in California can take various forms, including:

• Surgical errors: These are mistakes made during surgery that could were avoidable with proper care. For instance, performing surgery on the left knee instead of the right, leaving surgical instruments inside the patient’s body or causing unintended damage to organs.
• Medication errors: This involves prescribing or administering incorrect medications or dosages. This may include prescribing a medication that a patient is allergic to, giving the wrong dosage (either too much or too little) or administering the wrong medication.
• Failure to treat: This occurs when a health care provider fails to provide appropriate treatment for a diagnosed condition. Discharging a patient too early from the hospital, not providing the necessary follow-up care or failing to refer a patient to a specialist when needed are examples of failure to treat.
• Nursing errors: Occur when a nurse fails to provide the standard of care expected, leading to patient harm, such as administering the wrong medication, failing to monitor a patient’s vital signs, neglecting to follow a doctor’s orders or making errors in patient documentation.
• Hospital negligence: Involves the failure of the hospital staff to ensure a safe environment for patients, leading to injury or harm. For instance, inadequate staffing, poor hygiene and sanitation practices, failure to properly maintain equipment and delays in treatment.
• Anesthesia error: This occurs when an anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist makes a mistake during the administration of anesthesia, leading to patient injury. Examples include administering the wrong dose of anesthesia, failing to monitor the patient’s vital signs during surgery or not properly reviewing the patient’s medical history for potential complications.

If you believe you have been a victim of medical malpractice, consult with our experienced medical malpractice lawyers at McMurray Henriks, LLP. You may have a right to file a lawsuit against the doctor. You may also have a right to include the nursing staff, their supervisors, the hospital staff – such as cleaners, suppliers or administrative personnel – and the health care facility in the lawsuit.

How Do I Prove Medical Malpractice?

The short answer is, of course, to hire a seasoned medical malpractice lawyer. Proving medical malpractice is a complex process. It involves several steps. To qualify as medical malpractice in California, the courts require proof of:

1. Duty: The doctor or medical staff and patient had a relationship, which means the doctor or staff had a responsibility to care for the patient.
2. Establish the standard of care: This usually involves showing what a reasonably competent health care provider would have done in a similar situation.
3. Breach of standard of care: The doctor or medical staff did not meet the expected standard of care, acting differently than a competent doctor or medical staff would.
4. Causation: The provider’s breach of care or negligence directly caused injury to the patient.
5. Damages: The patient experienced injuries such as physical pain, emotional distress, extra medical costs or lost income.

At McMurray Henriks, LLP, we understand. You are hurt. You may be confused after placing your trust in a medical professional and do not know where to turn. Call us today to discuss your circumstances.

Experienced California Birth Injuries Lawyers

Birth injuries can range from mild to severe and life-threatening. They can be caused by several factors, including complications during labor and delivery, medical errors, or underlying health conditions of the mother or baby. Medical negligence has led to injuries sustained by a newborn or the mother during childbirth such as:

• Failing to perform a timely C-section: A Cesarean section (C-section) may be necessary for a prolonged labor, fetal distress or abnormal positioning of the baby. Delays can lead to oxygen deprivation and other complications. Failure to perform a timely C-section can result in conditions such as cerebral palsy, brain damage or stillbirth due to lack of oxygen.
• Improper use of forceps or vacuum extractors: Tools assist in the delivery process when labor is not progressing adequately may cause significant trauma. Forceps can cause skull fractures, intracranial hemorrhage, facial nerve damage or eye injuries. Vacuum extractors can lead to scalp wounds, cephalohematoma (a collection of blood between the skull and periosteum), or subgaleal hemorrhage (bleeding in the space between the scalp and the skull).
• Not monitoring the baby’s oxygen level: Continuous monitoring of the baby’s heart rate and oxygen levels is essential during labor. Failure to do so can result in undetected fetal distress. Lack of oxygen (hypoxia) can lead to brain damage, cerebral palsy – which affects a baby’s movement and muscle tone – or Erb’s palsy – a type of brachial plexus injury that affects the nerves controlling the arm and hand, leading to weakness or paralysis.

It you are contending with your child’s birth injury, get a thorough medical evaluation to understand the extent and cause of the injury. Talk to our birth injury lawyers for help seeking compensation for medical expenses, ongoing care and other related costs. At McMurray Henriks, LLP, we can also help you locate specialists such as pediatric neurologists, physical therapists and support groups.

Decades Of Experience. Multimillion-Dollar Verdicts And Settlements.

Our legal team at McMurray Henriks, LLP, are medical malpractice attorneys who fight hard to help our clients get the compensation they need. We are highly skilled trial lawyers. We bring decades of experience to the table. We help individuals and families reclaim their lives. Fueled by a relentless pursuit of justice, we have secured multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements for our clients.

We handle our medical malpractice cases on a contingency basis. This means you will receive a free consultation and case evaluation and no legal fees unless we win your case. Call our office in Los Angeles at 323-931-6200 or send us an online inquiry to begin your medical negligence claim.