If you’ve ever been to a hospital emergency room, you’ve noticed that it can seem like barely controlled chaos. Even though the environment is fast-paced, medical providers must still provide their patients with a high level of care. Unfortunately, there are times when medical negligence on the part of doctors, nursing staff or other ER employees can result in very serious and even debilitating injury. When these mistakes are made, victims may need to file a lawsuit to attempt to recover damages to compensate for those injuries.
Examples of emergency room errors
Although there are many things that have the potential to go wrong during an emergency room visit, here are a few examples of situations that could have catastrophic results:
- Failure to correctly diagnose heart problems that could lead to a cardiac arrest
- Medication Mistakes
- Misread charts, test results or x-rays
- Failure to provide proper post-treatment monitoring
- Delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis (often found in cases of appendicitis, strokes, aneurisms and blood clots, embolisms and strokes)
- Making serious surgical
- Failing to recognize or treat postoperative infections
What constitutes “Hospital Malpractice”?
In certain cases, the hospital where the patient was injured can also be sued in a hospital negligence lawsuit. Hospitals are responsible for evaluating prospective staffers’ qualifications adequately, which includes their experience, certifications and education level. If a hospital hires under-qualified or incompetent medical staff, it could be held liable for any patient injuries due to that employee’s incompetence. Sometimes hospital medical personnel engage in conduct that is equivalent to medical malpractice, and that hospital may then be held liable. Examples include:
- Inaccurate diagnosis
- Misuse of medical equipment
- Neglecting a patient or not offering them proper treatment
- Performing unnecessary surgery or operating without consent
- Not ordering necessary diagnostic tests
- Medication mistakes
- Using anesthesia improperly
- Failing to follow hospital protocol, resulting in injury or infection
If you feel you have been the victim of hospital medical malpractice, you should speak with an experienced personal injury lawyer. Attorney Gloria Seidule has been fighting for the rights and fair compensation of the injured in Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce and Stuart, Florida for over 25 years. Call today for a free case evaluation at 772-287-1220.
