More Harm Than Good? What To Do When a Medical Professional is At Fault in Your Injury Case

Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other medical professionals are in the business of healing people, and we put them in a position of trust. We trust our doctors to make the right decisions in our treatment, our nurses to keep us safe during a hospital stay, and our pharmacists to dispense the right medications and to warn us about dangerous drug interactions. But what happens when medical professionals do more harm than good? What should you do when a doctor or professional caregiver is responsible for seriously injuring you or a loved one?

Anyone who is responsible for your health, whether a doctor, nurse, pharmacist, lab technician, or home health aide, has a duty to follow medical, safety, and sanitary protocols. If a medical professional harms a patient or even puts the patient at risk through carelessness, neglect, or outright abuse, this is medical malpractice, also called medical negligence. If you have been injured or have had your health seriously compromised by medical malpractice or negligence, you have a right to compensation and should seek the advice of an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Some examples of medical malpractice include failing to take necessary actions during an in-hospital health crisis, neglecting sanitary precautions, and ignoring standard safety protocols. You can become a victim of malpractice at any stage of life. Most of us are born in a hospital in the care of doctors and nurses. During our lives, almost all of us will seek medical assistance, and at the end of our lives, some of us will rely on the care of staff in a nursing home.

Dangerous Drug Side Effects

Drugs are often released to the public before the full range of side effects is known and understood. Drug interactions and side effects can cause serious injury, medical problems, and even death. In some of the worst instances, as in the case of the arthritis drug Vioxx, the drug company was aware of serious health risks and continued to produce the product anyway. Such behavior by a company almost goes beyond negligence. Many people who took Vioxx suffered heart attacks, the risk of which may have been increased by the drug.

Birth Trauma and Birth Injuries

The most common birth injuries include oxygen deprivation, forceps injuries, and head and body trauma from being dropped or bumped. Doctors or nurses who handle newborns too roughly or fail to ensure that a baby receives enough oxygen during the birth process may be guilty of medical malpractice or negligence.

Surgery Errors and Medication Errors

Everyone makes mistakes, but healthcare professionals know that making mistakes can cause serious harm and cost lives. That is why checks and procedures are in place to ensure that doctors know which procedure is being performed and pharmacists are aware of drug interactions.

If a doctor performs the wrong surgery, performs the surgery incorrectly, or injures a patient during a surgery, that doctor may be held liable for malpractice. If a pharmacist ignores a dangerous drug interaction or dispenses a dangerously high dose of a medication, that pharmacist may be guilty of malpractice or negligence.

Nursing Home Neglect and Abuse

According to the Health Policy Institute of Ohio, 29,000 Ohioans were victims of elder abuse in 2007. If your parent or grandparent in assisted living has unexplained injuries, is suffering from malnutrition or dehydration, has become depressed, or had untreated bedsores, start asking questions. These are all warning signs of abuse. Nursing home staff is responsible for keeping your elderly relatives safe and healthy. If something seems to be wrong, speak up.

Doctors take an oath to protect their patients, and healthcare professionals agree to a code of conduct that protects patients against medical errors, needless infections, serious injuries, and wrongful death. Medical professionals take on this heightened responsibility because lives are at stake. When doctors violate the accepted standard of care, we are all less safe. Negligent doctors cannot be allowed to hurt people.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are not "frivolous" when they bring closure to the patients who have been seriously harmed, and especially when they stop bad doctors from hurting patients in the future. Legitimate malpractice claims don't just benefit the victim; they improve safety for the community as a whole.

If you or someone you love has been injured or has had their health seriously compromised due to medical malpractice, negligence, abuse or neglect, contact the medical malpractice lawyers at Chester Law Group Co., LPA at 1-800-218-4243.

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