While most patients experience medical care that leaves them feeling better, sometimes healthcare professionals make preventable mistakes. These are called medical malpractice or negligence claims.

A medical malpractice lawsuit involves two parties: the plaintiff and the defendant. The plaintiff is the patient or someone designated by the patient to act on their behalf.

1. Document Your Symptoms

The most crucial aspect of any medical malpractice case is the patient’s records, holding the importance of legal representation. Judges and jurors consider these the most valuable pieces of evidence and can make or break a claim. Medical professionals need to understand how important it is to document all aspects of a patient’s care, including symptoms, treatment plans, medications prescribed, and any other relevant details.

When a physician makes a mistake, the patient’s medical records are the only objective evidence of what happened and whether that mistake constituted malpractice. Malpractice cases usually involve a healthcare professional deviating from the accepted standard of care. This can include a misdiagnosis, surgical error, medication error, or failure to treat an injury.

Patients have a right to access their medical records and request copies of these documents from their doctors. This allows patients to monitor their care, seek a second opinion, and share their medical history with other healthcare providers. In addition, medical documentation provides a clear timeline of the events leading up to an alleged malpractice incident.

Thorough and accurate medical documentation is a vital part of every medical negligence claim. A fully documented record can help prevent a lawsuit and serve as a powerful defense in the event of a legal dispute.

In medical malpractice cases, factsfinders consider written documentation to be more objective and unbiased than verbal testimony. Plaintiffs’ lawyers will often use a doctor’s inability or unwillingness to document symptoms as evidence of subpar care, and this can hurt the chances of a successful malpractice claim.

Medical documentation should be thorough and clearly describe the patient’s symptoms. It should also provide the doctor’s reasoning behind each medical decision and how that care compares to the established standard of care. In addition, all notes should be legible and identify the physician to whom they pertain. Otherwise, it may appear that the squiggles are simply subjective complaints of the patient.

If you or a loved one has been injured due to medical malpractice, it’s important to contact an attorney with experience in this area of law. A skilled attorney will be able to review your medical records and determine the best course of action.

2. Contact a Medical Expert

Many medical malpractice cases depend on expert witness testimony to be successful. These experts are healthcare professionals who can examine medical records and treatment options to provide an informed opinion about what a reasonable doctor in similar circumstances would have done. They can also help explain complex medical concepts and terminology to the judge and jury in the case. This allows the court to make an appropriate decision based on facts and logical arguments rather than feelings and speculations about what should have happened.

In a medical malpractice lawsuit, your attorney will need to prove that the defendant failed to meet a reasonable standard of care for their field of practice and that this failure caused you harm. The medical expert will evaluate your case to determine what other doctors in your field would have done under the same circumstances and compare that to what your doctor did, proving that they deviated from acceptable practices and caused you injuries.

Your medical expert will also be able to testify about the extent of your injuries and damages, including pain and suffering. This is an important element in a medical malpractice claim as you may be entitled to compensation for this damage.

You will want to choose an expert who is still practicing medicine, preferably in the same field as your case. Experts who no longer actively practice medicine are more likely to be out-of-date with the latest standards in their field and less credible. In addition, some states have laws requiring that medical experts be licensed to practice medicine in order to qualify as an expert witness.

An experienced New York medical malpractice lawyer will be able to identify and hire a qualified expert for your case. They will have access to a network of medical experts and will be able to find an expert for any field of medicine. They will also know how to get an expert witness to agree to work for a reduced fee or free of charge in your case.

Moreover, they will understand the importance of providing the expert with all medical records and any existing expert reports or opinions related to your case. Organizing these documents and sharing them quickly and easily with the expert using software like Clio can help ensure that the expert has everything they need to give you an accurate and complete evaluation.

3. Gather Medical Records

If you think you’ve been injured by a doctor’s malpractice, it’s important to gather as much evidence as possible to strengthen your claim. This includes medical records, expert witness testimony, and statements from witnesses. This evidence is crucial for proving that the doctor’s actions were negligent, resulting in injury. In addition, it’s also essential for calculating damages. From major hospital bills to office parking fees, all expenses incurred as a result of your injuries should be documented for inclusion in your case’s compensatory damages.

Medical records are a patient’s best evidence of harm caused by a physician’s negligence. These documents provide an in-depth account of the health history and treatment of a patient, including test results and surgical notes. However, these records are not infallible. It is not uncommon for vital information to be omitted or misinterpreted. Furthermore, medical records are often not written contemporaneously with the patient’s care, resulting in inaccurate documentation.

While doctors must follow the established standard of care, that does not mean they cannot make mistakes. In fact, even minor errors can have devastating consequences for patients.

A common mistake is relying on the word of a physician instead of obtaining the patient’s own medical records. This can lead to a misdiagnosis or incorrect treatment. Incorrect diagnosis can result in serious complications, such as paralysis, brain damage, and wrongful death.

Another common error is failing to review the record and cross-reference it with personal notes, recollections, and other documentation. It’s also important to understand that the terminology used in medical records is complex and may be difficult for laypeople to interpret. It’s advisable to have an expert review these documents before using them in court.

Moreover, it’s imperative that the person responsible for acquiring and reviewing medical records is not biased. Failure to do so can lead to a misreading of the facts and a weakening of a malpractice case. In addition, it’s important to note that the medical records should be authenticated and include a date stamp to ensure their validity in court.

4. Contact an Attorney

When people seek medical care, they expect healthcare professionals to keep them safe and healthy. Unfortunately, mistakes can happen that cause serious harm. If a healthcare professional fails to provide treatment that is generally accepted in the medical community, this is considered malpractice and may be grounds for a lawsuit.

Malpractice claims are complicated and require specialized legal expertise. Therefore, it is important to consult with an attorney as soon as you suspect a doctor has failed to meet the standard of care and caused your injuries. During your first consultation with a lawyer, you will want to bring any documentation you have, such as medical records, bills, and photographs. A detailed timeline that provides the attorney with a full picture of what happened is also helpful. This will help the attorney evaluate the evidence to determine whether or not you have a viable malpractice case.

In addition to assessing the merits of your claim, an attorney will be able to inform you of the statute of limitations in your jurisdiction. The statute of limitations is the time limit within which a medical malpractice lawsuit can be filed. Generally, it is two years from the date of your injury.

If your doctor has committed medical malpractice, your attorney will work to ensure you receive fair compensation for your injuries. This is important not only to help you recover from the harm caused by your physician, but also to hold the medical professional accountable and prevent them from injuring other patients.

While a lawsuit does not guarantee that the negligent doctor will lose their license or go out of business, it can put pressure on the medical professional to change their practices and keep other patients safer. A successful medical malpractice lawsuit can help restore trust in the healthcare system and prevent other innocent patients from suffering similar harm. If you believe that you have been injured by a doctor’s error, do not hesitate to contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney for a free consultation. The attorneys at Morris James can provide you with the skilled representation necessary to hold a negligent healthcare provider accountable.