Although doctors are not perfect, they are expected to do their job in accordance with the established standard of care. If a patient is injured during a medical procedure, there are many ways to establish that a preventable error caused that injury. In most cases, a malpractice case revolves around the patient’s allegation that the doctor was negligent.
To establish negligence, a patient must show that he or she was injured and there is a link between a doctor or some other medical professional’s error and the injury. Furthermore, it must be established that the doctor or other medical professional had a duty to care for the patient and that the doctor deviated from a reasonable standard of care. In addition to negligence, a patient may also allege that he or she did not or could not give informed consent prior to a procedure.
In other words, the doctor did not talk to the patient about what the procedure entailed and the possible risks of going ahead with the procedure. Furthermore, the patient must give written consent in some cases before a medical professional may touch him or her. If consent is not obtained prior to a procedure that leads to injury, whoever preformed the procedure could be charged with battery.
Those who have been injured due to a medical error may be eligible to seek damages through the filing of a medical malpractice lawsuit. Compensation could include reimbursement of medical bills as well as wages that were lost due to an inability to return to work for a prolonged period. Those who have been harmed by a doctor’s negligence may wish to talk to an attorney to determine the remedies that may be available.
