What is an example of medical malpractice? The stereotypical example would be "foreign object" malpractice--a surgeon leaves a clamp or other device in a patient. However, medical malpractice takes in any instance where a failure to follow good medical practice results in injury to a patient.
Some Examples of Malpractice by Commission
When a medical care provider negligently (or carelessly) does something wrong that hurts a patient or delays his or recovery, that's malpractice. For example:
- The wrong anesthetic is given to a patient, causing a bad reaction and organ damage.
- A bone is incorrectly set, resulting in permanent disability.
- A operation is botched, resulting in a loss of the organ being operated on.
- The wrong medication is prescribed, and bad drug interaction kills the patient.
- The wrong physical therapy is proscribed and the exercises exacerbate the damage, causing permanent weakness.
- During surgery, the surgeon accidentally ruptured an organ, leading to a life-threatening infection.
Malpractice by Omission
Often, malpractice results from the failure of medical staff to take action when they should, or to diagnose a condition or disease requiring treatment:
- A newborn is delivered with difficulty breathing, but nursing staff does not call a doctor; the child suffers brain damage.
- A patient fell and hit his head, but hospital staff failed to notice that he was bleeding into his brain, leading to brain damage.
- A dermatologist misdiagnoses a melanoma as a benign cyst, costing the patient the chance to have her cancer treated at an early stage.
- A patient in the emergency room waiting area hemorrhages, with no one paying attention; the patient bleeds out on the hospital floor.
- Appendicitis was misdiagnosed as indigestion, and the patient suffered a burst appendix.
What Strong Malpractice Cases Have in Common
Obviously, there was malpractice, or "bad practice": a doctor, nurse, hospital, etc. was careless or did not provide the accepted caliber of care.
However, for there to a strong malpractice case, there must also be considerable injury or loss: long-term or permanent disability or loss of function; debilitating and continuing pain; a near-brush with death; substantial medical or hospital costs; loss of wages due to inability to work. If a patient was fortunate enough to suffer only minimal injury from medical negligence, then while it might be worth reporting the matter to licensing authorities, it's probably not worth suing.
How an Attorney Can Help
To anyone who is sick or injured, their condition is serious. An experienced counsel, armed with legal knowledge and a more objective perspective, can help a patient determine if they do in fact have a good case to seek compensation.
