Unfortunately, just like with any profession, healthcare providers make mistakes. Sometimes they’re honest mistakes, but other times they come from malice or carelessness. If you have been seriously injured or became ill due to your healthcare provider’s negligence, misconduct, or medical mistakes, you have the right to compensation for your damages.
An experienced Easley, SC medical malpractice attorney from Smith Jordan Law can help you hold the negligent provider accountable and recover the funds you need to get through this period in your life. A respected Easley personal injury lawyer at our firm can help you figure out how to navigate the claims process, understand some of the complex laws that are affecting your case, and ensure you are compensated fairly for your suffering.
Contact our office to request a free consultation today and learn more about your next steps.
Many patients are unsure whether their healthcare provider has made a mistake or committed medical malpractice. There are several reasons for this. First, there are side effects and risks associated with nearly any type of treatment option, including a simple prescription drug. For example, you may experience headaches, dizziness, nose bleeds, nausea, and other side effects when you undergo anesthesia or take certain types of prescription medications.
Your healthcare provider has a legal obligation to inform you of these risks before moving forward with the treatment plan. Once you understand the potential risks and side effects, you can give your informed consent to the treatment plan. The problem is that many healthcare providers hide their medical mistakes behind the side effects and risks associated with your treatment plan. If a medical professional makes a mistake, they may not necessarily inform you of the mistake they made. Instead, they might state confidently that the issue was caused by a potential side effect of your treatment.
This is why it is crucial to get help from an Easley, SC medical malpractice lawyer. We can review the specific circumstances of your keys to determine whether your healthcare provider’s negligence or misconduct was the cause of your illness or injury.
If you became ill or suffered injuries due to side effects, you experienced because of your medical treatment plan, this would not be considered medical malpractice. However, if your healthcare provider made a medical error or mistake that was the cause of your condition, you may have grounds for a medical malpractice insurance claim or civil lawsuit.
Medical malpractice can come in several forms. If you believe your healthcare provider has made one of the following types of medical mistakes, you may have grounds for legal action against them:
Misdiagnosis occurs when a healthcare provider diagnoses a patient with the wrong medical condition. For example, your physician might diagnose you with the common cold only to find out weeks later you have esophageal cancer.
Delayed diagnosis occurs when you suffer injury or illness because your healthcare provider did not diagnose your medical condition in time.
Negligent failure to treat means that your medical provider failed to properly treat your diagnosed medical condition. This most often occurs when healthcare providers misdiagnose patients.
Surgical mistakes are 100% preventable. If your surgeon was inexperienced, operated on the wrong body part, performed the wrong operation, left a surgical instrument in a body cavity, or made some other type of medical error, you may have grounds for a surgical malpractice lawsuit.
Birth injuries can affect not only newborns but birth mothers as well. When healthcare providers fail to recognize the signs and symptoms and diagnose or treat mothers or newborns during pregnancy, labor, or delivery, birth injuries can occur. Some of the most common types of birth injuries include:
If healthcare providers do not offer follow-up care or request patients contact them to schedule a follow-up appointment, they can be held accountable if the patient’s condition deteriorates. They can also be sued if the quality of care is not sufficient. For example, they may not read through your patient history, listen to you as you describe your symptoms, or brush you off when you complain of pain.
One of the most common reasons more medical malpractice victims do not hire a lawyer for help is because they believe they cannot afford the costs. For this reason, we work with our clients on a contingency basis. Here, you are not expected to pay anything for our services upfront. In fact, we work on a no-win, no-pay basis, so we only get paid for our services if we were in your case.
When we recover a compensation package for your damages, a portion of your award will go towards our attorney’s costs based on the previously agreed-upon details within the contingency agreement. This is a risk-free opportunity for you to demand justice with help from a powerful legal advocate.
The initial steps you take when you discover your healthcare provider has victimized you could make all the difference in your ability to recover compensation for your damages.
First, make sure you switch healthcare providers. You can ask your existing healthcare provider or nursing staff for a referral so you can start working with a medical professional who truly has your best interests at heart. You may have had a long relationship with your existing provider, but now they will be looking out for their best interests. So, you will need to get medical treatment and follow-up care from a new provider.
Before you cut ties with your previous healthcare provider, make sure you obtain a copy of your medical records. You have the right to access your medical records by law. If your physician or other medical professional refuses to give you copies of your medical records, notify your personal injury lawyer so we can move forward with legal action accordingly.
As soon as you have an opportunity to do so, connect with a reputable medical malpractice lawyer in Easley, SC. While you are healing, you should not have to deal with the legalities of your case. We can step in and:
It is crucial to report your medical malpractice complaint to all appropriate authorities. Depending on the circumstances of your case, you may need to notify the Easley Police Department, the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners, the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, and other licensing boards.
Always follow your new healthcare provider’s treatment plan. You should be prepared to attend all follow-up appointments, take prescription medications, attend physical or occupational therapy, start mental health counseling, and any other treatments your healthcare provider deems necessary. This way, you can begin to heal and be as strong as physically possible as you pursue your medical malpractice lawsuit or insurance claim.
South Carolina law requires all medical malpractice lawsuits to be filed within three years of the discovery date. This could be the date the medical mistake occurred or the day you were diagnosed with injuries related to your healthcare provider’s medical error.
You have the right to be made whole when you have been wronged by your healthcare provider. The damages you are entitled to are known as compensatory damages and consist of a combination of economic losses and non-economic losses.
Economic damages are strictly monetary. Some examples could include:
Non-economic damages are not financial. Their value is entirely subjective, so they must be quantified accordingly based on their impact on your life. Some examples of non-economic damages could include:
Several parties could share liability for your medical malpractice injuries and damages.
Your primary care doctor may share liability, as they are usually responsible for diagnosing and treating patients.
Nurses have specific medical responsibilities, and when they make mistakes or errors, they can be held accountable.
When anesthesiologists are not paying attention, make mistakes, or lack experience, they can be responsible for patients suffering from medical conditions caused by anesthesia errors.
Physician assistants have many of the same responsibilities that primary care doctors do. Likewise, they can be held accountable when patients suffer severe injury, illness, or death.
Pharmacists are responsible for filling prescription medications. If they fail to fill the prescription with the right medication or make prescription dosage errors, patients can suffer life-threatening consequences.
When medical devices malfunction or are defective, the distributor or manufacturer of these devices can be sued for negligence.
Lab technicians who make mistakes can be held accountable. If they do not read the medical results correctly or improperly handle medical samples, they may be responsible for your medical condition.
Hospitals can be held accountable for the actions of their staff. It can also be sued if it has procedures and protocols in place that are not in the best interest of patients or have repeatedly caused patients undue illness or injury.
You may have grounds for a claim against any type of medical facility that is found to have contributed to your medical condition. This may include your physician’s office, dental office, pharmacy, or any other medical facility.
Our medical malpractice attorneys prove malpractice by collecting valuable supporting evidence and showing that the medical duty of care has been breached. If your healthcare provider made a medical mistake another healthcare provider of similar training, experience, and education would not have made, the standard of care may have been breached, and you may have the right to compensation through a medical malpractice lawsuit.
Medical malpractice claims are a little different from traditional personal injury cases. Make sure you have a legal advocate on your side who has dedicated their career to helping medical malpractice, nursing home abuse, and injury victims across Easley, Greenville, and the entire state of South Carolina.
Smith Jordan Law will fight for justice and do everything possible to hold your negligent or irresponsible healthcare provider accountable to the fullest extent of the law. Are you ready to pick up the pieces of your life? Fill out our convenient contact form or call our office at (864) 343-2222 to schedule your 100% free consultation as soon as today.
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