When Do Surgical Errors Qualify as Medical Malpractice?
All medical professionals, including surgeons, doctors, and nurses, are responsible for carrying out their duties with reasonable care to ensure patients’ safety. However, mistakes can and do happen. If a surgeon or their team causes you harm or fails to inform you of potential risks before surgery, you might wonder if you have a medical malpractice case. Not every surgical error qualifies as malpractice. Therefore, to find out if you have a valid claim, you should speak with an experienced medical malpractice attorney who can determine whether the mistake involved a breach of the duty of care, therefore qualifying as malpractice.
Understanding Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice occurs when a medical professional causes harm to a patient by failing to meet the accepted standard of care. For malpractice to happen, there has to be some level of carelessness involved. For example, a doctor misdiagnosing a condition, prescribing the wrong medication, or failing to monitor a patient after a procedure could lead to harm. If that harm was preventable and caused by negligence, it may be considered medical malpractice.
When you hear of malpractice, what probably comes to mind is mainly doctors. However, doctors are not the only ones who can be held responsible. Nurses, anesthesiologists, X-ray technicians, and other medical professionals can also be liable if their negligence leads to a patient’s injury.
When Are Surgical Errors Considered Malpractice?
Every surgery carries some level of risk. Some complications, such as infections, bleeding, or adverse reactions to anesthesia, are known risks, even when the procedure is performed correctly. Before surgery, patients are usually informed of the potential dangers and sign an informed consent form acknowledging they understand such risks.
However, not all surgical complications are considered unavoidable. If a surgeon makes a reckless mistake that another competent surgeon wouldn’t have made under the same circumstances, the error may be considered medical malpractice. So, when wondering if your case amounts to malpractice, the key question you need answered is whether the surgeon provided care that met the standard expected of other professionals in similar situations.
Common Surgical Errors That May Lead To a Malpractice Claim
Surgical errors are among the most frequent causes of medical malpractice lawsuits. Some of the most common mistakes that could be considered malpractice include:
- Operating on the wrong body part or performing the wrong procedure
- Cutting or damaging nerves, arteries, or blood vessels, leading to serious complications
- Administering too little anesthesia, causing the patient to wake up during surgery or too much, leading to severe complications.
- Not providing proper post-surgery care, resulting in complications that could have been prevented.
- Failing to address unexpected complications during surgery.
- Performing a risky surgical procedure that wasn’t medically necessary.
- Delaying or failing to recommend a necessary operation, worsening a patient’s condition.
How To Prove Medical Malpractice for a Surgical Error
If you suspect that a surgical error caused you harm, proving malpractice requires gathering solid evidence. To do this, you need to demonstrate four key elements:
- You had a formal doctor-patient relationship
- The doctor failed to meet the standard level of care
- The surgical error directly caused your injury or worsened your condition
- You suffered damages due to the error, such as additional medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, or term disability.
Speak With an Experienced Tampa Medical Malpractice Attorney
If you believe a surgical error caused your injury, contact our skilled Tampa medical malpractice lawyers at Gunn Law Group P.A. today to review your case and explore your legal options.
