Learn About Medical Malpractice And When To Sue

Article by Phoenix Medical Malpractice

Medical Malpractice and Tort Reform

Political debates, television news, and radio sound bites regarding healthcare and medical malpractice reform commonly use the phrase “tort reform”, but seldom provide any in-depth information about what tort reform is or what it entails.

The simple definition of the word “tort” is injury or wrongful act. To be more specific, a tort has been committed when physical, emotional, or financial injury has been caused against another party, regardless of the act being intentional or unintentional. When a tort is committed against a medical patient, the injured party has the legal right to hire a medical malpractice attorney to bring suit against the perpetrator for damages.

Medical malpractice, and medical negligence are just two broad category examples of torts.

Tort reform measures were enacted in California in the 1970s due to a jump in the cost of medical malpractice insurance. Caps were placed on victim's compensation, and limits on the contingency fees of personal injury attorneys were also instituted.

Tort reform refers to the idea that laws should be passed by a state or federal government to limit the amount and/or type of awards that are given to an injured party. The innocuous sounding phrase of “reform” actually amounts to decreasing the rights a person has to seek fair compensation for a civil wrong. Applying a statute of limitations on the amount of time that one has to file a medial malpractice claim is the most commonly known example of tort reform.

Another example is dollar amount limits that have been put in place to limit the amount of damage awards.

So-called “reform” places limits on the amount of responsibility that the negligent or wrongdoer must legally bear. And who are the strongest supporters of tort reform? Large companies and insurance corporations.

R. Klettke is a freelance writer. He writes about personal injury and medical malpractice law and other matters of jurisprudence.

Note: This article is not intended to provide legal advice upon which you should rely in making any decisions regarding the instituting or prosecuting of a legal claim. Laws and rules relating to the bringing of a claim vary widely from state to state. You should always contact a personal injury attorney to obtain information as to the rules and the laws pertaining to any claim you might have.

About Malpractice and Claiming

Malpractice is the act of a medical professional, lawyer, or other influential professional who does not follow standard procedures and causes harm, injury or death to a client. Particularly in medical practices, by neglecting to follow generally accepted guidelines, a physician or other medical practitioner may inflict grave bodily harm on an individual. Harm may also come in the form of mental duress. When you've suffered damages at the hand of a local physician or medical center, contact a Phoenix malpractice attorney to gain control of the situation.

We tend to put a tremendous amount of trust into our family doctors, their nurses, and other clinical or hospital staff who are responsible for running a medical center. However, they, too are only human and experience the occasional mistake. But whether the "mistake" was genuinely unintentional or a mere result of carelessness, the result means harming a patient-and they are liable either way.

It is very unnerving to realize that a mishap could occur while you're in surgery both unaware of the situation and unable to do anything about it.

Not only have people suffered serious bodily injury through the fault of a medical professional, but some have also experienced serious mental or emotional damage that require months and sometimes even years to rectify. The costs for counseling and other psychiatric treatment could really add up fast, but the pursuit of filing a malpractice claim can help you gain compensation that will not only cover past medical bills and treatments, but the costs of future ones as well. Be sure to talk to a Phoenix medical malpractice lawyer to determine if your claim for past or future treatments are justifiable reasons for filing a malpractice lawsuit.

It is important when you search for a Phoenix lawyer that you find one who not only specializes in the type of malpractice you're trying to claim for, but one who you feel comfortable with.

You want to be able to share every nuance of your situation with the lawyer so that they can offer you the best help available.

Medical Malpractice Lawyers

What exactly is medical malpractice? Medical malpractice is defined as the negligence by a health care provider, resulting to injury, or even death of a patient. Its important for you to hire the services of a reputable medical malpractice attorney in case you or your loved one was injured or put at risk by a doctors negligence.

Recent studies indicate that there were around 195,000 hospital deaths from 2000 to 2002 due to negligence and medical errors. Other studies show that only 1 out of 10,000 patients would have lived for 3 months or more if proper care had been provided. The statistics are shocking, and the number of people injured by medical malpractice is quite hard to fathom.

Each medical malpractice case varies a great deal from one another. If a patient was under the care of a doctor or a hospital, and something wrong puts the patient at risk, a case of medical malpractice can be considered in this scenario. A patient may have undergone unnecessary surgery, incorrect medication, or a slew of other things that may have gone wrong when a patient was under the hospitals care.

This is when a good Oakland medical malpractice lawyer comes in. The lawyer investigates the different elements and details of the case. They know what information must be gathered and what must be proved. Once this has been established, they determine if there is medical malpractice case on your hands and if its a good idea to pursue it.

You can hire an Oakland motorcycle accident attorney to take on medical malpractice cases, but it would be better to get someone more specialized. Nevertheless, its always important to be able to trust and feel comfortable with any lawyer you choose. Make sure they have a good track record and years of experience under their belt. This way, youll feel more confident when talking about your case with them.

A good Oakland medical malpractice lawyer also knows how to present your case, being familiar all the laws governing the medical field. Unlike representing yourself, most of these malpractice cases can be settled out of court quickly and easily. If you or your loved one was put at risk by malpractice, call a medical malpractice lawyer right away.