The difference between the provision of quality healthcare and medical malpractice is often the difference between life and death. In the practice of medicine the stakes are incredibly high because the consequences of errors can be so enormous. The residual of a medical mistake can be life-long or even life-ending.
Contact The Dow Firm, P.C. today for a free consultation or call (912) 264-1919.
In Georgia, medical malpractice occurs when a patient is harmed by a medical practitioner (a doctor, a nurse, a physician’s assistant, a respiratory technician or any other healthcare provider) due to the provider’s neglect in fulfilling his/her professional duties. The malpractice may occur in a hospital emergency room, during labor and delivery, during surgery, in surgery recovery, in intensive care units, in patient rooms, in diagnostic testing, in an independent or hospital pharmacy, in a doctor’s office or any other place where doctors, dentists, nurses, hospital staff, therapists, pharmacists or any other health care provider interacts with patients or prepares medications or equipment for patient care. It can occur in a single incident or repeated acts or omissions in the day to day care provided under the supervision of a physician or by staff at a hospital or health care facility. In Georgia, medical malpractice occurs in a variety of ways as committed by the spectrum of healthcare providers to include:
- a failure to conduct a proper exam to identify a medical condition
- a failure to properly diagnose an ailment (misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis)
- a failure to timely diagnose a condition (like a stroke, cancer or a heart attack)
- a failure to develop an appropriate healthcare plan
- a failure to provide appropriate treatment (including providing the wrong treatment that compounds a patient’s condition)
- a failure to prescribe proper medication
- a failure to provide warnings about risks of treatment
- a failure to obtain consent for certain procedures or treatment (informed consent)
- a failure to prescribe the right drugs or prescribing the wrong drug to address a condition
- a failure to properly supervise staff
- a failure to use appropriate equipment, staff and/or services
- a failure to manage a pregnancy by failing to conduct adequate testing during the prenatal period or failing to prescribe the mother limited activities, bed rest or a C-section rather than vaginal delivery (for conditions such as preeclampsia, pregnancy-induced hypertension, pregnancy-induced diabetes, eclampsia, pre-term delivery, stillbirth, etc.)
- a failure to avoid obstetric mistakes (including labor and delivery errors)
- a failure to deliver a baby in a safe manner by failing to appropriately respond to fetal distress during labor with an emergency cesarean section (C-section)
- a failure to avoid complications during a forceps-assisted delivery or a vacuum-assisted delivery
- a failure to provide a timely C-section (delayed cesarean section)
- a failure to provide emergency care to a distressed newborn
- a failure to avoid conduct resulting in or compounding birth trauma, cerebral palsy, brain damage, Erb’s palsy, hypoxia, dystocia, respiratory depression, Hypoxic Ischaemic Encephalopathy (HIE), brachial nerve damage, placental abruption, fetal acidosis)
- a failure to administer medications properly (overdoses and giving the wrong medications)
- a failure to operate when necessary
- a failure to perform a surgery properly (such as performing the wrong procedure on a patient, performing a procedure on the wrong part of a patient’s body (such as a left leg instead or a right leg), amputating the wrong appendage or removing the wrong organ, leaving a surgical sponge, clamp, needle or other surgical tool or instrument in a patient’s body, perforating surrounding organs, etc.)
- a failure to avoid nerve damage, scarring and other disfigurement in surgery
- a failure to avoid performing an unnecessary surgery or other treatment (such as radiation and chemotherapy)
- a failure to create a proper surgical environment that will remain sterile
- a failure to create a proper surgical environment that will not promote flash fires or improper surges from surgical equipment
- a failure to properly administer and monitor anesthesia care during an operation
- a failure to properly monitor a patient’s condition after surgery during recovery
- a failure to intubate a patient (placement of an airway tube in the proper channel)
- a failure to avoid anesthesia death
- a failure by a hospital to provide properly trained staff (such that nurses or other staff perform tasks outside the scope of their abilities or authority)
- a failure by a hospital to provide a safe emergency room (ER) or emergency department (ED)
- a failure by a hospital to provide a proper amount of staff to ensure timely patient monitoring and delivery of nursing care
- a failure by hospital staff to recognize significant patient signs that additional treatment is required
- a failure by hospital staff to report changes a the patient’s condition to a doctor
- a failure by hospital staff to report a doctor or other provider’s dangerous/careless care rendered to a patient
- a failure by a hospital in granting privileges to an unfit or hazardous physician (negligent credentialing and negligent privileging)
- a failure by a hospital to establish and follow proper safety policies and procedures for the operation of the facility
- a failure by a hospital to maintain a proper sanitation level (resulting in an unreasonably high rate of hospital-acquired infections)
- a failure to avoid a preventable suicide
- a failure to properly restrain or release a patient from restraints
- a failure to secure a patient who is subject to falls (such as an elderly patient or a sedated, post-operative patient)
- a failure to reposition a bed-ridden patient to avoid pressure sores/bed sores (decubitus ulcers)
- a failure to properly perform a laboratory test
- a failure to properly interpret an x-ray, mammogram, MRI, CT scan, PET scan, etc.
- a failure to avoid prescribing or administering a drug to which a patient is allergic, without first checking for a patient’s allergies
- a failure to attend to a patient when paged (also known as “patient abandonment”)
- a failure to identify the development of sepsis
- a failure to use properly functioning equipment (harm caused due to defective medical devices)
- a failure to identify childhood diseases (such as bacterial meningitis)
Actions sounding in medical malpractice in the state of Georgia are complicated both procedurally and factually so a person victimized by a healthcare provider must seek legal counsel from an experienced firm with substantial resources and know-how to properly vindicate a claim. Besides being exceptionally complicated, medical malpractice cases are relatively expensive to pursue because they are expert-intensive and necessarily involve healthcare providers who command a premium for their time and knowledge.
Contact The Dow Firm, P.C. today for a free consultation or call (912) 264-1919.
For instance, to simply file a medical malpractice lawsuit against a doctor in Georgia, a plaintiff’s complaint must be accompanied by an affidavit that complies with O.C.G.A. §§ 9-11-9.1 & 24-7-702 which sets forth at least one negligent act or omission claimed to exist against a defendant healthcare provider and the factual basis for each such claim. In other words, a lay person cannot just sue a doctor like one would file suit in a typical tort case. Instead, a person victimized by medical neglect in Georgia must generally hire another doctor to review the care provided to the victim and then the expert doctor, on behalf of the victim, must criticize the neglectful doctor in writing and under oath for a case to even be validly filed. This is just one aspect that complicates medical malpractice matters in Georgia. Another area of concern pertains to the applicable statutes of limitation for different types of medical negligence. It is imperative to note that the statutes of limitation for such claims varies depending upon the facts in a given case. For that reason, a seasoned medical malpractice lawyer is essential to a victim seeking compensation for a loss.
The Dow Firm, P.C. is seasoned in the area of medical malpractice and has a demonstrated record of successful outcomes for patients victimized by their healthcare providers.
Contact The Dow Firm, P.C. today for a free consultation or call (912) 264-1919.
The Dow Firm, P.C. is proud to offer services and represent clients with medical malpractice claims in Glynn County (Brunswick, Country Club Estate, Dock Junction, Everitt, Jekyll Island, Sea Island, Sterling, St. Simons Island and Thalman), Brantley County (Atkinson, Hickox, Hoboken, Hortense, Lulaton, Nahunta, Trudie and Waynesville), Camden County (Colesburg, Dover Bluff, Harrietts Bluff, Kings Bay Base, Kingsland, St. Marys, Tarboro, Waverly, White Oak and Woodbine), Wayne County (Jesup, Odum and Screven), McIntosh County (Cox, Crescent, Darien, Eulonia, Pine Harbour, Ridgeville, Shellman Bluff, South Newport, Townsend and Valona), Pierce County (Blackshear, Bristol, Mershon, Offerman and Patterson), Chatham County (Bloomingdale, Garden City, Georgetown, Isle of Hope-Dutch Island, Montgomery, Port Wentworth, Pooler, Savannah, Skidaway Island, Thunderbolt, Tybee Island, Whitmarsh Island, Wilmington Island and Vernonburg) and counties throughout the state of Georgia.
The Dow Firm, P.C. is located in Brunswick, GA, however, our firm is able to manage medical malpractice cases and all types of personal injury cases anywhere in Georgia.
Call us today at (912) 264-1919.