Medical malpractice is something that can be easily swept under the rug by medical professionals. If you are currently filing a medical malpractice suit for nursing negligence, it is important you know your rights so you can protect yourself and get the recovery you deserve.
Filing a Medical Malpractice Suit for Nursing Negligence
There are several types of malpractice claims that can be filed against a medical professional such as a nurse. They include the following:
- Medication errors
- If the nurse did not monitor the overall condition of the patient
- Ignoring any medical complications that may have come up
- Not properly using medical equipment
A medical malpractice suit against a nurse usually arises when a nurse fails to do one of the aforementioned duties. When this happens, the nurse’s negligence must be a direct contribution to the serious injury or death of the patient in order for the case to be successful.
Who is Responsible
Before filing a nursing medical malpractice suit, one of the main questions that a medical malpractice suit seeks to answer is “who is responsible?” This answer to this question would often cast the burden of responsibility on both the nurse, the hospital, the attending physician or all three.
Often times an attending physician and hospital are deemed liable if the nurse was simply doing what she was told to do by the attending physician. Furthermore, if the attending physician could have in some way intervened in order to prevent negligence on the part of the nurse and chose not to, then there are grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit.
A hospital, on the other hand, can be held responsible financially and legally. In this instance, the nurse would have to be an employee of the hospital working under the charge of a doctor and she must have been simply fulfilling duties relative to her job when interacting with the patient. This then casts the burden of responsibility on the nurse and the hospital. The key here is to have your facts straight and to provide as much information as possible regarding the circumstances surrounding your malpractice lawsuit against the nurse.
You should ask a series of questions. For example, who was the attending physician during the nurse’s shift, does the nurse normally work with the attending physician, is the nurse new, who does the nurse report to, etc. The more concrete information that you have, the easier it will be to better understand what happened and how the nurse is accountable for it.
Getting Help
When filing a medical malpractice suit for nursing negligence, it is in your best interest and in the best interest of the case to contact an attorney who specializes in medical malpractice. Proving medical malpractice requires expert witnesses and testimony and a strong case, and an attorney can help you to prepare a claim that is more likely to succeed.
