5 Instances of Negligence by Medical Professionals that Warrant Legal Action

Medical negligence occurs when a medical professional fails to provide adequate care, causing injury or death. Medical professionals include

• Doctors
• Surgeons
• Psychologists
• Pharmacists

If you or someone you know has faced an instance of medical malpractice, you should consider hiring a lawyer. The experienced ones, like the medical malpractice lawyers at Hollander Law Firm, will be able to help you file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

5 Instances Where Medical Negligence is Applicable

A vast number of professions fall under medical care, and the situations that can be classified as medical negligence in these practices are numerous.

Negligence Cases in Pharmacy

A pharmacist’s job is to dispense medication to patients based on their prescription. However, a pharmacist’s responsibilities vary depending on state law.

Some examples where a pharmacist can be held liable for negligence include:

• If the pharmacist dispenses the wrong medicine.
• When a patient shows up with multiple prescriptions and the pharmacist fails to check if it’s safe for the patient to consume so much medication.
• Failing to check the patient’s allergy history before dispensing the medication.
• Failing to inform the patient of side effects before giving them the medication.

It is important to note that these laws change depending on the state, and some states only require a pharmacist to dispense the right medicine based on the patient’s prescription and nothing more.

Negligence in Psychology

Psychologists provide critical care to patients so they can be held liable for negligence in specific cases.

Psychiatrists have a duty of care to evaluate suicide risk. If they fail to see a patient’s symptoms or possible risk, and the patient dies, they can be held liable.

Prescribing the wrong dosage of medicine that leads to adverse side effects or death can lead to a medical malpractice suit.

If a patient informs a psychiatrist that they intend to hurt or kill someone, and the doctor believes it to be a credible threat but fails to inform law enforcement, they can be held liable. This depends on the specifics of the case as doctor-patient confidentiality comes into play.

Examples of Negligence in Chiropractic Care

Chiropractors treat health problems related to the bones, muscles, and joints by using their hands to examine and correct pain points. State licensing laws control what kind of treatments chiropractors are allowed to administer. They can be sued for medical malpractice due to any of the following reasons:

• The patient experienced injuries or discomfort due to their treatment, like pinched arteries, spinal stenosis, facial paralysis, etc.
• Performing a procedure that the patient did not consent to.
• They are not allowed to administer a treatment under state law.

Surgical Errors that Qualify as Negligence

Most medical malpractice lawsuits in the US involve surgical errors. The most common types of surgical errors are detailed below.

• Wrong site surgery:  Performing surgery on the wrong body part or organ. For example, when a patient requires knee replacement surgery on their right leg, but the surgeon operates on their left leg.
• Operating on the wrong patient: While this type of error is not common, it’s not unheard of. For example, performing an eye surgery on a patient scheduled for an eye treatment.
• Infections: Use of unsanitary surgical equipment during surgery that leads to infection or death in patients with a compromised immune system.
• Leaving Operating Objects: It’s fairly common for surgeons to leave surgical equipment like gauze or forceps inside a patient. While it is common practice for hospitals to count surgical equipment before and after surgery, mistakes can still happen. This can lead to adverse effects.

Misdiagnosis by Doctors

One of the main duties of doctors is the diagnosis and treatment of common diseases and health conditions. If a doctor fails to perform this duty to an acceptable standard, they can be sued for malpractice. A list of common misdiagnoses is listed below.

• Failure to note the urgency of medical problems, such as not considering that a patient’s headache might be a symptom of a tumor.
• Misinterpreting test results, such as the strain of bacteria causing infection in a patient.
• Misdiagnosing symptoms, like telling a patient they have multiple sclerosis instead of another neurological disorder.

Conclusion

There are a plethora of cases where medical practitioners can be held liable for malpractice. If you think you haven’t received adequate treatment, your medical provider may be held liable for medical malpractice. Contacting a lawyer will help you file a lawsuit and collect the evidence necessary to prove your case.