I got a nosocomial infection during treatment, can I sue the hospital? Are they liable for the infection?

Nosocomial infections are defined as infections which are acquired during a stay in a hospital, and not related to the injury or illness for which the patient was admitted. Essentially, a patient acquires the injury as a result of visiting the hospital, and being treated. There have been many cases where a hospital acquired infection has been shown to be caused by medical negligence, which means the patient can file a medical malpractice lawsuit demanding compensation for any injury resulting from the infection.

The problem with many of these cases is the level of injury incurred through the infection may not justify filing a lawsuit. Of course you should talk to a medical malpractice lawyer to find out if your is a good case, but it's important to understand that, unless the infection caused significant injury such as a permanent impact on internal organs, immune system, etc, it is not always worthwhile to bring a medical malpractice suit.

To answer your questions, yes, the hospital may be held liable, and yes you can probably file a suit but it may not be worth the cost of doing so. You should talk to a medical malpractice lawyer to find out if your case merits filing a suit for negligence.

Lawsuit for Hospital Acquired (Nosocomial) Infections