Medical negligence can be devastating for victims and their families, and cases against medical providers can be complex, so it is in your best interest to have experienced counsel.  The Chronister Law Firm has been successful in recovering millions for medical negligence victims and their families.

 How do you prove medical negligence?

Medical negligence occurs when unreasonable conduct by a healthcare provider harms a patient. Negligence in the medical setting must look at the standard of care.  In medical malpractice cases, the standard of care is the level of skill and care that a reasonably competent and skilled healthcare provider would have provided under similar circumstances. It's essentially a starting point used to determine if a healthcare provider's actions fell below what's expected in their field. The following shows how to prove that a medical malpractice case exist.  If any one of these steps is not present, then you do not have a medical malpractice case.

 1. Establish a Doctor-Patient Relationship:

• You must show that a doctor-patient relationship existed between the plaintiff and the healthcare provider at the time of the injury.  This creates the link between the health care provider and the patient.  Most often, we look at the medical records to establish this link and we also typically add the hospital and any person named in the medical records, to include nurses.

 2. Determine the Standard of Care:

• The standard of care is determined by considering what a similarly trained and reasonably prudent healthcare provider would have done under the same or similar circumstances.  This standard of care can be flexible determined by variances in each patient’s case, the medical setting, and other variables which differ from the standard of care in a “normal” setting.  The standard of care must be established by a health care provider that has enough experience handling similar cases to form an opinion of the standard of care.  The health care provider submitting their opinion is known as an Expert Witness and normally will have no direct connection with the heath care provider in question.

 3. Prove Breach of the Standard of Care:

• You must demonstrate that the healthcare provider's actions deviated from the established standard of care. This is accomplished through evidence that includes at a minimum:  medical records, expert testimony, commonly accepted journals, and other relevant evidence. 

 4. Establish Causation:

• You must show a direct causal link between the breach of the standard of care and the patient's injury or harm.  Expert testimony is often crucial to establish causation by explaining how the deviation from the standard of care led to the injury. 

 5. Demonstrate Damages:

• You must demonstrate that the patient suffered actual harm or damages as a result of the healthcare provider's negligence.  These can include physical injuries, emotional distress, lost wages, medical expenses, and other financial losses. 

 The following are common causes of medical malpractice claims:

• Surgical Errors often constitute medical malpractice and can result in serious injury. Surgical errors can happen in many different ways. Some of the most common include:  Performing the wrong type of surgery; Operating on the wrong body part; Leaving objects inside the patient when closing an incision

• Misdiagnosis refers to diagnosing a patient with the wrong health condition and Delays in Diagnosis refers to a doctor’s failure to promptly identify a patient’s medical condition. These errors can result in the patient receiving invasive or harmful treatment, such as chemotherapy or surgery for a condition they don’t have.  Alternatively, misdiagnosis can involve a doctor failing to identify a serious medical condition like cancer. This causes the disease to continue to progress when you should have already begun treatment.

• Medication Errors refers to prescribing and taking the wrong medication leading to a serious, negative impact on a patient’s health. Prescribing the wrong medication, errors in dosage and frequency of administration, failing to consider health history and other medications, and failing to give medication instructions.  This also includes errors in distributing the wrong medication by a pharmacy or pharmacist.

• Other causes include failure to obtain informed consent, medical equipment errors or use, and failing to properly monitor and care for a patient following their last treatment or surgery.

I urge you, or a representative for you, to call as soon as possible after your medical injury has been discovered as time is very valuable in these types of cases. In most cases, there is a two (2) year statute of limitations in Georgia. If you or your family knows you have been injured by a health care provider do not wait to call me. I will need time to gather your information/medical records, review your records, get your records to an expert witness and obtain their opinion BEFORE I can file a case for you. The less time remaining in your statute of limitations will determine if I, or any other law firm, will have enough time to file your case.

Our team includes a legal nurse consultant, who also serves as an ICU nurse, offering medical insights and guidance to our clients and contributing to the healthcare management of those we represent.  She has proven to be invaluable in determining the merits of a case.

Reach out to explore how the Chronister Law Firm can advocate for your rights and interests.