At Morgan & Morgan, the attorneys in our Florida offices regularly handle medical malpractice cases, and have been successful in collecting compensation for patients who have been injured by surgical errors. Patients are typically forewarned of risks associated with procedures they undergo; however, they expect their surgeon will proceed with the utmost care and minimize the potential for these risks. If a surgeon breaches the standard of care expected of medical professionals and the patient is injured as a result, the surgeon, staff or hospital may be liable for any resulting damages.
If you or a loved one has sustained injuries due to a surgical error, you may have the option to collect compensation for your injuries. To discuss your case with one of our medical malpractice attorneys, please fill out our case review form today, at no cost or obligation to you.
How Can an Attorney Help Me Prove Medical Malpractice?
Given the complicated nature of invasive procedures, there are many risks that can accompany any type of surgery. If a health care professional deviates from the expected standard of care and harms a patient, they may be liable for their negligence or failure to act. An attorney can help an injured patient show the three essential elements necessary in a successful medical malpractice claim: breach of duty, injury, and damages.
Breach: The surgeon’s work must fall below accepted and expected standards, breaching the duty of care owed to the patient.
Injury: The patient suffers an injury as a result of this breach of the expected standard of care.
Damages: The injury the patient sustained has a negative impact--emotionally, physically, psychologically, and/or financially.
Each medical malpractice case is unique, and employing the help of a knowledgeable attorney can prove to be essential in the outcome of a case. For example, demonstrating a causal link between the violation and the injury may be difficult; however, an experienced attorney’s use of medical experts, examination of hospital files and charts, review of the practitioner’s surgical history, and interviews with witnesses can help establish this causal link.
The statute of limitations in Florida only provides injured patients a certain amount of time to bring a medical malpractice suit, so it is important to contact an attorney as soon as an injury is discovered.