Harrison County Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Few injuries are as demoralizing and potentially lifechanging as those that are the result of medical malpractice. Whenever we visit a doctor, dentist, or hospital, we expect to receive a competent level of care. This includes a prompt diagnosis, the ordering of all required tests, the prescribing of proper medication, and the competent completion of procedures.
Sadly, medical errors in Harrison County are common. Although no patient is guaranteed a satisfactory outcome, when medical errors are so egregious as to violate the minimum standard of care held by all medical professionals in the particular field in question, this may be a case of medical malpractice. Defendant doctors, dentists, and hospitals who commit malpractice are legally liable to provide compensation for your losses.
A Harrison County medical malpractice lawyer could help you or a loved one pursue a civil claim. Our experienced personal injury attorneys could work to investigate whether poor care rose to the level of malpractice, help measure your damages, and follow the strict legal requirements to filing these civil cases.
Common Ways Practitioners Might Commit Malpractice
In general, medical malpractice occurs when a medical professional fails to meet the appropriate standard of care, causing injury to the patient. This means that a defendant did not provide care that a reasonably competent peer would have done given the circumstances. If this failure to provide proper care resulted in an injury or a worsening of a condition, this may be an example of medical malpractice.
Malpractice could occur at any stage of the patient-doctor relationship. Even general practitioners could commit malpractice if they do not provide competent care during a routine physical. Of course, emergency doctors are also civilly liable if they do not follow the standard of care in providing emergency medical services.
Typical examples of medical malpractice include:
- A failure to provide an accurate or timely diagnosis
- The improper interpretation of diagnostic tests
- Prescribing improper medication
- A failure to properly perform a procedure
- A failure to refer a patient to a specialist for targeted care
- Cutting or removing the wrong body part
- A failure to treat the condition presented
A medical malpractice lawyer in Harrison County could provide more information as to the legal definitions of medical malpractice. A dedicated lawyer could then perform a preliminary analysis of a person’s medical care to determine if malpractice may have occurred and then help victims work toward full and complete recovery.
Legal Limitations on Medical Malpractice Claims
Medical malpractice claims are a subset of personal injury cases. This means that an injured plaintiff carries the burden of proving the defendant’s negligence. However, this is extremely difficult in medical malpractice cases. Because many of these claims involve establishing the minimum standard of care and evaluating whether a particular medical professional met that standard, it is always necessary to work with a qualified medical expert to pursue these claims.
Mississippi Code § 11-1-58 requires all complaints alleging medical malpractice include a certification from a plaintiff’s attorney. This certification must state that the attorney consulted with a qualified medical expert and that this expert’s opinion led the attorney to believe that there is a good faith reason to file the complaint. As a result, working with an expert witness is critical to a medical malpractice claim.
Limitations to Recoverable Losses
These cases are also subject to damage caps. MS Code Ann. §11-1-60 separates available damages in a medical malpractice claim into economic and non-economic categories. While a negligent medical provider is always liable for all economic damages, such as medical costs or loss of income, there is a strict limit on noneconomic damages. These are payments to cover pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and disfigurement. Under the statute, no medical malpractice claim may result in more than $500,000 in non-economic damages, no matter how severe the incident. A Harrison County medical malpractice lawyer could help to guide individuals through the complex legal path of medical malpractice claims.
Let a Harrison County Medical Malpractice Attorney Be of Assistance
If you or a loved one believe you may have suffered an injury or worsening of a condition because of a doctor, dentist, or hospital error, you may be entitled to significant payments. However, not every poor medical outcome is malpractice. A defendant is only liable if a plaintiff proves that his or her breach of the minimum standard of care resulted in the injury.
This includes working with a qualified medical expert who could review the records in your case and give his or her opinion as to how a defendant’s failure resulted in your losses. These losses include the need for additional medical care, lost wages, and emotional trauma.
A Harrison County medical malpractice lawyer could help to take the lead in your claim. Attorneys could gather evidence, measure your losses, and locate a qualified expert to help evaluate and present your claim. There is a time limit of two years from the date of injury to pursue your case against private medical care providers – only one year to initiate claims against a County or State-owned hospital or employee. Contact us today to get started. Consultations are always free, so reach out today.
