I Was Harmed by an Emergency Room Mistake. Do I Have a Medical Malpractice Claim?

 Posted on December 28, 2020 in Medical Malpractice

Going to the emergency room is rarely a pleasant experience. A person may go to the ER because they are having chest pain and are worried that the pain is the first sign of a heart attack. They may also visit the ER after having a severe allergic reaction. Abdominal pain, broken bones, lacerations, migraine headaches, fevers, and other medical concerns may also lead someone to visit the emergency room. Unfortunately, some ER patients go to the facility seeking answers and relief but end up being victims of harmful medical mistakes.

Emergency Room Errors Can Lead to Preventable Suffering and Death

Emergency room doctors, nurses, and other staff have the important task of evaluating patients’ symptoms and determining the necessary course of action. When an ER worker makes a mistake that leads to a patient’s injury or death, the medical worker or the medical facility may be liable for damages. Often, emergency room malpractice claims arise because of delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis. Consider the following example: A patient visits the emergency room because he or she is having severe abdominal pain. Staff assure him that his symptoms are caused by a simple case of indigestion when in actuality, the patient is suffering from appendicitis. The patient goes home and suffers a ruptured appendix. In a situation such as this, the emergency room staff’s failure to accurately diagnose appendicitis may lead to an emergency room malpractice claim.

Other examples of emergency room errors that could lead to medical malpractice claims include:

• Delayed treatment of life-threatening injuries and illnesses
• Administering the wrong type of medication or the wrong dose of medication
• Failing to correctly triage a patient
• Anesthesia mistakes
• Inadequate sanitation of medical equipment or devices that leads to patient infection
• Mistakes conducting laboratory tests or misinterpreting laboratory results
• Premature patient discharge or inadequate follow up

When an ER Mistake Constitutes Medical Malpractice

If you or a loved one suffered injury or death after being treated in an emergency room, you may be unsure of whether you have a legitimate medical malpractice claim. Emergency room malpractice occurs when the following elements are present:

• The person injured or killed was a patient in the emergency room
• The emergency room staff failed to meet the medical standard of care when treating the patient
• The patient’s illness, injury, or death was caused by the staff’s failure to meet the medical standard of care
• The patient suffered damages

Damages in an emergency room malpractice claim may include additional medical expenses, funeral and burial costs, lost income, pain and suffering, and much more.

 Contact a Winnebago County Emergency Room Errors Lawyer

If you or a loved one were the victim of an emergency room mistake, contact Mannarino & Brasfield, A Division of Schwartz Injury Law. A Rockford medical malpractice attorney from our firm can help you investigate the circumstances of the mistake and determine if you may be entitled to compensation. Call us at 815-215-7561 today and schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.

Source:

https://www.verywellhealth.com/standard-of-care-2615208