Who Can Be Held Accountable For A Medical Misdiagnosis?
It’s important to understand your rights and legal options if you or a loved one were injured due to misdiagnosis or improper care of a doctor, dentist, or other medical provider. The best and easiest way to achieve this is to speak to an experienced personal injury attorney like our lawyers at Gregory S. Young Co., LPA.
When you contact the firm for your free initial consultation, an attorney will take the time to hear your story, answer your questions and help you understand if you have an actionable medical misdiagnosis claim.
Is Misdiagnosis Medical Malpractice?
Misdiagnosis includes errors like assigning the wrong diagnosis, unreasonably delaying a diagnosis or failing to diagnose a serious condition altogether because many diseases and medical conditions have overlapping symptoms, incorrect or delayed diagnoses are not always a sign of medical malpractice.
However, misdiagnosis is medical malpractice if it occurred because the health care provider failed to meet the expected standard of care. That is, they took actions or failed to take actions contradicting what a reasonable medical professional would have done under identical circumstances, and the patient suffered harm as a result.
In order to win a medical misdiagnosis lawsuit, you must prove that the health care provider negligently violated their duty of care and that the violation was responsible for your injuries or the injuries/death of a loved one.
Commonly Misdiagnosed Medical Conditions
As mentioned above, failure to diagnose and delayed diagnosis are forms of misdiagnosis. These errors are especially harmful when the patient’s condition is life-threatening and timely treatment is critical. The following are often the subject of medical misdiagnosis lawsuits:
- Diagnostic errors or delays related to cancer
- Delayed diagnosis or incorrect diagnosis of heart attack or stroke
- Delayed diagnosis of preeclampsia and other dangerous conditions in women about to give birth
- Misdiagnosis of or failure to diagnose severe traumatic brain injury
- Misdiagnosis of potentially fatal drug interactions or allergic reactions
It’s important to remember that diagnosing the wrong condition is also a delayed diagnosis. In both cases, the patient is not receiving timely treatment for a serious or life-threatening condition.
Steps To Take If You Believe You Were The Victim Of A Misdiagnosis
When you receive care from a medical provider, you expect your health to improve; however, sometimes, medical providers make mistakes, take unnecessary risks or act negligently and fail to deliver a basic standard of care. Many states may have specific rules about pursing medical malpractice cases. If you believe you have been misdiagnosed or improperly cared for, you should:
- Seek a second opinion, and try to have your new medical provider document in writing that your symptoms were a direct result of poor prior medical care
- Be aware that medical doctors must be licensed to practice
- Check your doctor’s qualifications in order to see if your doctor is in good standing or has had any prior complaints about his or her practice
- Keep all of your medical records and reports, including prescription receipts
Medical misdiagnosis claims involve complex theories of liability. The doctor’s malpractice insurance wants to deny or settle your claim for as little as possible. Be aware that they have experienced adjusters trained to protect their interests and ask questions to build legal defenses to your claim.
For these reasons, there are also several behaviors to avoid. Until you have contacted an attorney, you should not sign a release of your claims. You should also refuse to make any written or recorded statements or sign anything that could be against your interest.
Finally, do not discuss settlement until you are fully recovered from your injuries and have been discharged by your physician.
Get Answers From An Ohio Medical Malpractice Attorney
If you would like to discuss a potential medical misdiagnosis lawsuit with one of our medical malpractice lawyers, we invite you to call 513-838-4562 in Cincinnati, 888-469-6437 in Dayton or Kentucky or email our Cincinnati office, Gregory S. Young Co., LPA. We will arrange a free consultation with one of our attorneys. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Ask about:
- Free parking at our downtown Cincinnati location
- Appointments available at 10 locations, including nine suburban locations
- Evening and weekend appointments
- Home and hospital visits
- No attorney’s fees unless you collect*
Our satellite offices are located in Mason, West Chester, Tri-County, Blue Ash/Kenwood, Northgate, Clermont County, Florence, Finneytown and Western Hills.
*Some costs associated with representation may apply.