Medical misdiagnosis is a legal term and is also known as ‘Medical Malpractice’. It occurs in many ways in the healthcare environment. However, the crucial thing to remember is just because the patient’s condition worsens doesn’t mean you can legally pursue a medical malpractice claim.
Medical malpractice litigations are complex and challenging. You need a professional medical malpractice lawyer if you feel you possibly have a legal case. In Miami, Dolan Dobrinsky Rosenblum Bluestein, LLP are a well known law firm with highly experienced attorneys. Patients and families around Central and South Florida hurt with medical negligence approach DDRB Law Firm. The attorney will help you determine if it is a valid misdiagnose case or not.
Is it medical malpractice?
Legal medical misdiagnose cases involve a common thing – the action of the healthcare provider fell short of the proper care standards. It means the doctor was negligent. Questions are arising like what is a poor medical care standard? Negligence can be due to many reasons like –
- Failure to detect a harmful condition
- Misread test results
- Failure to explain the grave risks associated with a specific treatment
- Unacceptable errors during surgery or medical procedures
- Recklessly acted under alcohol or drug influence
If the doctors guessed wrong then this can …….
- Worsen your medical condition
- Delay in a correct diagnosis
- Result in wrongful death
Misdiagnosis cannot just apply to the doctor, but even the things about pharmacy billing and reimbursement or the hospital could be at-fault.
Common misdiagnoses
A doctor’s diagnosis is 95% perfect but misdiagnose can delay the treatment, which worsens or you can even say the patient has to agonize with unnecessary treatments. Some common misdiagnosed medical conditions are –
- Heart attack can get misjudged as a panic attack or indigestion
- Asthma as recurring bronchitis
- Lupus as fibromyalgia, fatigue syndrome, or rheumatoid arthritis
- Lyme disease as depression or flu
- Stroke in young patients can get dismissed as migraine
As long as the doctor acts with reasonable care during the treatment, there is no malpractice case even if the condition of the patient takes an unexpected turn. Similarly, many medical conditions are untreatable. A correct diagnose of an untreatable condition and sound decisions to care for the patient is not a valid medical malpractice situation.
If you feel worse after the treatment and see no improvement, then visit your doctor and explain your extra symptoms or get a second opinion from another physician. If you wait the symptoms may get worse and you will be held responsible. In medical misdiagnose cases, patients are also reviewed carefully just like doctors.
Worsening your injury can convey a wrong message, so get treated first. The limitation statute to file a medical malpractice claim ranges from 2 to 6 years. You get time to recover and hire an experienced medical malpractice lawyer.
For proving to misdiagnose the lawyer will depend on four elements including duty, breach, causes, and damages. There is the paperwork needed to build a case. It can act as evidence to prove medical errors happening, while a doctor’s appointment or at the hospital.
You will also need an expert doctor for a differential diagnosis to prove your healthcare provider was incorrect. You have the right to get competent medical care, therefore litigating a doctor for negligence is necessary.