Many people believe there is a medical malpractice crisis in American today. There are thousands of injuries and deaths every year due to medical mistakes and misdiagnoses by doctors. Medical malpractice attorneys are kept busy filing suits for those who have suffered or lost a loved one. And medical malpractice insurance rates are rising, causing some doctors to leave the field because of these rising costs. Other doctors are employing "defensive diagnosis" practices, whereby they order additional tests and procedures to ensure they have confirmation of all diagnoses, using them as protection against medical malpractice suits. Patients are caught in the middle, having to take greater control of their own medical care, and if there is an error causing them injury, finding an experienced medical malpractice attorney to help them determine if they have grounds to file suit.