Surgery Malpractice: FAQ's

Medical malpractice cases often involve serious injury to the patient that should have been avoided had the medical professionals not acted negligently. Some of the most serious types of medical malpractice cases involve surgical negligence, and can leave patients permanently injured, disabled, disfigured or can even lead to death. Below are common questions about surgical malpractice and medical negligence and the rights injured patients and their family members have to seek justice through the civil court system.

What is surgical malpractice?

Surgical malpractice occurs when a doctor, surgeon, anesthesiologist or even nurse fails to perform their duty as required by the accepted medical standard of care, and this negligence leads to an undue injury to the patient.

How does surgical negligence occur?

Often times, simple steps are overlooked during surgery that can have catastrophic effects. This can be as simple as a surgeon acting carelessly and injuring internal organs to performing surgery on the wrong body part. Other cases involve a lack of judgement on the part of the medical professional when it comes to acting on critical changes in the patients vital signs. In any case, negligence in the operating room boils down to the surgeon or other medical professional performing their job in such a way that deviates from the accepted medical standard of patient care.

What are common types of surgical malpractice?

Errors in the operating room can happen in any number of ways, but some of the most common errors include:

• Wrong Site Surgery
• Objects Left in the Patient
• Accidental Internal Organ Damage
• Surgery on the Wrong Patient
• Failure to Monitor During Surgery
• Anesthesia Errors
• Oxygen Deprivation/Anoxia/Hypoxia
• Unnecessary Surgery

While surgical errors such as these are uncommon, they do happen regularly, and those that lead to serious patient injury are grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit.

How can wrong site surgery happen?

It seems unthinkable, but wrong site surgeries occur on a regular basis, and hospitals have created protocols to prevent such errors. Unfortunately, these protocols are not always followed and this failure is often the cause for such cases.

An example is the mandatory time out that many hospitals have implemented prior to any surgical procedure. This time out involves the entire surgical team taking a moment to pause, confirm amongst each other and the medical chart that they are indeed operating on the correct site, and double check everything prior to starting the process. Unfortunately, many times doctors will rush past this simple step to get to work. This opens up the opportunity for wrong site, or even wrong patient surgery.

Can the hospital be sued for surgical errors?

In some cases the hospital may also be liable for damages caused a patient for surgical malpractice. While often the hospital liability is a function of the contract under which the medical professional in question is employed, other times the hospital itself contributes to the patient injury. This can happen in case where the operating room was insufficiently equipped, and the patient suffered as a result. Some of the most common anesthesia malpractice suits involve the operating room lacking the appropriate amount of oxygen. When oxygen runs out during surgery, the patient suffocates. If left long enough without oxygen, hypoxia or anoxia can occur which can lead to brain damage or death.

What about infections after surgery?

Infections are a major concern in any surgical treatment, which is why medical professionals are required to maintain such strict hygiene standards. If an infection does occur, it should be treated immediately. If it is left to spread, it can lead to sepsis, septic shock and even death. If an infection goes without proper treatment and leads to further patient injury, the doctors and hospital may be held liable to pay damages to the patient.

Who can bring a surgical malpractice claim?

In order to bring a claim for medical malpractice involving surgical negligence, the patient or their family must be able to show that medical negligence was the direct cause of an undue injury to the patient. While this may sound straightforward, proving medical malpractice is very difficult, and requires scientific testimony from an expert medical witness.

How long does a patient have to bring a claim?

The statute of limitations for surgical malpractice claims varies by state, but typically ranges from 18 months to three years. In cases of objects left in a patient, the time limit may be longer. Once this time limit has run out, no claim can be made, and the patient is barred from any legal action regarding the case forever.

How can I find out if I have a legitimate malpractice claim?

Talk to a medical malpractice lawyer immediately. Only an experience medical malpractice attorney can determine if the injury, evidence and details of the case warrant the cost of prosecuting such complicated cases. Most medical malpractice lawyers offer a free consultation where patients can explain their case and get legal advice regarding their legal rights.