A medical error can occur at any time. Oftentimes, a Virginia medical malpractice mistake can have life-changing repercussions, leaving you wondering what do to. Fortunately, medical malpractice law provides victims a way to recover compensation for their medical injuries.
Understanding Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice occurs when professional negligence or substandard care by a doctor or other health care professional results in harm, injury, or death. In many cases, medical malpractice involves medical mistakes or errors.
A Look at Some Numbers
Medical mistakes occur every day in America. The severity of these mistakes range drastically. According to Medical News Today, each year:
- Diagnosis errors claim the lives of about 160,000 people.
- Preventable, in-hospital mistakes claim the lives of about 195,000 people.
- On average, there are between 15,000 and 19,000 medical malpractice suits filed against American doctors.
Common Medical Errors
The list of potential medical malpractice mistakes resulting in injury is nearly endless. Some of the most common medical malpractice errors include:
- Improper administration of medication
- Overprescribing narcotic pain medication
- Prescribing the wrong type of medication
- The administration of the wrong blood type
- Improper treatment of bone fractures
- Performing surgery on the wrong limb or organ
- Improper monitoring of a patient and/or baby during labor
- Failure to diagnose and treat diabetes
- Failure to diagnose and treat kidney stones
Seeking Justice
If you have been injured due to a medical error, you might be able to hold the responsible party and/or entity liable for your injury. However, health insurance companies have powerful lobbies working hard to ensure state and federal laws are favorable to their own interests. Unfortunately, holding the responsible party’s feet to the fire can prove a daunting and difficult task and be emotionally draining.
How Our Team Can Help
A medical error can ruin your life. At Tavss Fletcher, our team of experienced and dedicated medical malpractice attorneys has represented a variety of medical malpractice cases. Our team includes skilled investigators, expert witnesses, and other legal professionals who are dedicated to helping you recover the maximum recovery for your injury.
If you have been injured because of the negligence of your doctor or other healthcare professional, you should call a Virginia medical malpractice attorney at Tavss Fletcher at (757) 625-1214. Let us evaluate your case and help you get started in recovering for your damages.