Like most other types of tort claims, medical misdiagnosis cases usually revolve around the legal concept of “negligence.” In order to successfully recover compensation, the victim must show that their medical care provider behaved in a careless or reckless manner.
A seasoned injury attorney will examine the circumstances of your case to determine whether you have a valid negligence claim.
The legal concept of negligence involves four distinct elements. To prove that a doctor was negligent, the claimant must show all four of the following:
Duty of Care
The plaintiff must prove that the liable party owed them a duty of care. Typically, this involves showing that a doctor-patient relationship was established.
Doctors have a responsibility to provide patients with a high standard of medical care. They have this legal duty of care in virtue of their role as medical experts.
It is usually simple to prove that a doctor-patient relationship existed in misdiagnosis cases.
Breach of Duty
The claimant also needs to prove that their physician breached the existing duty of care. When a medical care provider fails to fulfill their duty to a patient, they can be held responsible for resulting harm.
Breaching a duty of medical care can involve a misdiagnosis. This is especially true if the incorrect diagnosis results in damage to the patient.
The plaintiff must successfully argue that another doctor would have provided a correct diagnosis in a similar situation. This will prove that the physician in question breached their duty to provide a professional standard of care.
Causation
The injured patient needs to prove that the doctor’s breach of duty was the cause of the damages that they sustained. If another event or factor contributed to the harm that the patient suffered, it may be challenging to prove medical negligence.
For example, suppose that a physician provided an incorrect diagnosis and the patient was injured in a car accident the next day. In this case, the misdiagnosis would have no causal relation to the damages that the patient suffered.
Actual Damages
Finally, the plaintiff needs to prove that their physician’s misdiagnosis led to actual damages. The potential of harm is not enough to rise to the legal standard of negligence.
The claimant must provide evidence that they suffered actual harm for which they are owed compensation. Any financial or personal damage resulting from the accident or injury will affect the value of the malpractice claim.
To better understand the legal requirements of negligence, reach out to the skilled personal injury attorneys at Morgan & Morgan. Our dedicated team has the experience and specialized knowledge to recover maximum compensation in your case.
So is a misdiagnosis considered malpractice? Yes, as long as the actual damages resulted from the misdiagnosis.