MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
Medical malpractice is the result of a healthcare
provider’s failure to provide the expected standard of
care to a patient. The expected standard of care means
that a healthcare provider must use the same degree of
skill and learning, under the same or similar
circumstances, that are used by other members of the
medical profession. Unfortunately, some doctors cause
harm through their mistakes, ignorance, negligence, lack
of skill and misdiagnosis.
At The Law Offices of William F. Horsley, P.A., we
relentlessly pursue compensation for our injured
clients. Our success is based on years of experience
litigating all types of personal injury
and wrongful death claims. Our objective
is justice for injured people.
Healthcare professionals are only required to give a
standard of care that is ordinary or normal. A physician
can be negligent in a variety of ways. Some of the most
common ways that medical malpractice occurs is through
failure or errors in timely diagnosis, ordering
appropriate treatment, ordering necessary tests and
proper medication, consulting with specialists, and
surgical procedures. Although there are numerous types
of malpractice claims, the most common claims are:
The U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a
report estimating that as many as 98,000 patients die
each year as a result of medical errors in hospitals.
Compound this number with the unreported mistakes made
in other healthcare settings (physicians’ offices,
urgent care centers, nursing homes, pharmacies and home
care) and the magnitude of medical malpractice becomes
staggering. In addition to the high costs of medical
mistakes in terms of people’s lives and quality of
life, our nation pays an estimated $17 billion per year
in costs due to preventable errors.
It is an attorney's obligation to determine as quickly
and efficiently as possible whether there is a good,
actionable case. Medical malpractice cases are by their
very nature complex, expensive to pursue, have a high
risk of no recovery, and often involve a client's
"personal" attachment.
In North Carolina, medical malpractice actions must be
commenced within two years of the act or omission giving
rise to the injury, or within two years of the date of
discovery, to a maximum of four years following the date
of the act or omission. Medical malpractice actions for
objects left inside the body may be commenced within one
year of the date of discovery, to a maximum of 10 years
after the date of the act giving rise to the injury.
Under North Carolina law, a minor must file suit within
one year of his or her 18th birthday
Determining if you have a potential case for medical
negligence or malpractice is difficult, at best. One
sign that you may have a potential case would be an
unexpected or very different result from a surgery or
medical treatment. Additionally, death or severe injury
that occurs as a result of "routine"
treatments or surgeries where the physician or doctor
can give no reasonable explanation for the death or
worsened condition of the patient, may give cause to
consider that medical malpractice may have occurred.
If your attorney is able prove your medical malpractice
case and the medical provider is found negligent, then
you are entitled to recover “damages.” Damages are
intended to help you return to the condition you were in
prior to the injury. There are several forms of damages
that you may recover in a medical malpractice award –
economic (for lost wages or medical expenses),
non-economic (for pain and suffering), or punitive (to
punish reckless behavior) damages. You may also receive
compensation for future medical expenses and loss of
future earnings. Punitive damages occur only in rare
cases when it is proved that the medical practitioner
had malicious intent.
The Law Offices of William F. Horsley, P.A. has
experience helping victims of medical malpractice in the
state of North Carolina. Please contact us if you have
any questions about an injury you have suffered, or to
report a personal injury case that you have. You may
call us at 1-800-953-2542 or contact us through our online
form.
For more information, please see our Medical
Malpractice Frequently Asked Questions.
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