Medical Malpractice Lawyers
Every doctor takes an oath where he or she promises to “never intentionally do harm.” When you or someone you love needs medical treatment, you put your trust in doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals.
These healthcare providers train for years to provide you and your loved ones with quality, professional care. Unfortunately, thousands of people are harmed every year in Missouri, Illinois, and throughout the United States due to preventable mistakes and below standard care on the part of healthcare providers.
What is Medical Malpractice?
When a medical professional causes injury or death because of a preventable mistake or a failure to act, it is called medical malpractice. Healthcare professionals have a responsibility to provide treatment that is at an acceptable standard of care established by medical experts. Failing to meet that standard of care through professional negligence that caused harm, resulted in an injury, or resulted in a wrongful death due to a preventable mistake or substandard care is called medical malpractice. Most medical malpractice cases include some sort of medical error that causes harm, such as a brain injury. These errors can include delayed or inaccurate diagnosis, patient neglect, hospital malpractice, medication errors, medical equipment misuse, or failure to adhere to hospital procedures.
A recent study by Johns Hopkins University found that more than 250,000 deaths every year in the U.S. are due to medical errors, making medical malpractice cases the third-leading cause of death for Americans.
Examples of Medical Malpractice Claims
Examples of hospital malpractice, nurse malpractice, and doctor malpractice include:
How Do I Know If I Have a Medical Malpractice Case?
The experienced medical malpractice attorneys at the law firm of Brown & Crouppen want to help you determine whether you or a loved one have a valid medical malpractice case. There are many factors involved in proving a medical malpractice claim. These include:
- Duty of care — Doctors must perform their duties in a manner consistent with accepted medical standards of care.
- Breach of duty — To be considered medical malpractice, a medical professional must have violated their duty of care by failing to act in a manner consistent with how other doctors would have handled the situation.
- Causation — This simply means that the healthcare provider caused personal injury through a medical mistake or below-standard medical care.
- Damage — A successful medical malpractice lawsuit must demonstrate that the personal injury caused damage, either economic or non-economic. These damages may include medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, pain and suffering, and loss of consortium (loss of assistance or companionship with a family member).
Why Do I Need a Medical Malpractice Attorney?
An experienced personal injury law firm like Brown & Crouppen employs a team of attorneys that are experienced in medical malpractice suits. Our attorneys want to help you navigate the complexities of a medical malpractice claim by:
- determining if you have a claim
- helping you collect the evidence and medical records you need for your case
- determining the potential value of your claim
- identifying the potentially liable parties
- questioning expert witnesses
- helping you understand the relevant laws and your rights
- handling the complicated process of filing the claim and taking it to court, if needed
Is There a Time Limit for Filing a Lawsuit?
If you believe you or a family member have been the victim of medical malpractice, don’t delay. In some states, a statute of limitations limits the amount of time you have to file a medical malpractice lawsuit. If you do not file within this time period, you may not be able to recover damages from the negligent party.
It All Starts with a Free Case Evaluation from the Team at Brown & Crouppen
Getting started is easy. You can call us at 800-536-4357 for a free consultation, or tell us about your case with our Free Case Review form. And remember, there’s no upfront cost to you — if you don’t get paid, we don’t get paid.
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