We’re taught to trust our physicians because they take an oath to do no harm and help us heal. While most medical professionals don’t make detrimental mistakes often, they happen and can be life-changing for patients.
Florida is one of the many states with legislation holding businesses and establishments accountable for the actions of their employees. The same rules apply to doctors who work as staff at hospitals. According to Florida law, the aggrieved party must notify the person at fault of their intention to file a medical malpractice claim.
If you have a medical malpractice lawsuit on your hands, it can be a scary and overwhelming time. For instance, if you happen to be a resident of Ocala, FL, and have sustained harm due to a doctor’s negligence, finding ways to ensure you get the justice and fair compensation you deserve will be at the forefront of your mind. Reliable and experienced Ocala medical malpractice lawyers can assist.
Here are five ways to get justice for those suffering from medical malpractice.
1. Hire an Experienced Medical Malpractice Attorney
According to a study from Johns Hopkins, medical malpractice is the third leading cause of death in the United States. Medical malpractice doesn’t always mean someone died due to negligence. It can be for injuries too, so if it’s the third leading cause of death, it’s safe to assume that the number of injuries from malpractice is pretty high.
The first thing you should do to help you get the compensation and justice you deserve is to hire an experienced medical malpractice attorney. These professionals have the knowledge necessary to help navigate the often muddy waters of medical malpractice.
They have the experience needed to go up against hospital or physician attorneys and reach an agreement quicker than if you were to try and go it alone.
2. Understand What Injuries Qualify as Medical Malpractice
Understanding what injuries qualify as medical malpractice is essential, too, because it ensures you’re filing claims correctly and not wasting your time. Your attorney can help you determine if you have a case, but these are some of the most common situations where you can seek compensation:
- Brain injury
- Birth injuries
- Surgical errors
- Emergency room errors
- Medical facility infections
- Wrongful death
- Misdiagnosis
- Mistreatment
3. Gather all Your Medical Records
When you’re fighting to get compensation for a medical malpractice suit, proving that there was a medical injury or a condition you didn’t have before but now have is essential. You can do this by providing all your medical records.
Most people provide only the most recent medical records, but depending on the type of injury or situation you’re in, gathering medical records from as far back as you can find will provide a more solid argument that you didn’t have the injury or condition beforehand. It helps make your case more airtight.
4. Prove Medical Negligence
Proving negligence is one of the most challenging parts of medical malpractice law. Since negligence can look like many things, your attorney will help you identify it. Most physicians or healthcare professionals sued for medical malpractice do so on accident, not purposefully.
Examples of ways you can prove negligence would be that the hospital or medical facility you were at didn’t have the proper equipment, the right medications to treat you, etc.
5. Retain Witnesses to the Negligence and Those With Malpractice Knowledge
You’ll want to have a few solid witnesses to the negligence. While your family members and friends can be beneficial, you’ll want to include some people with medical knowledge to make your case more solid.
Ideally, it will be other healthcare professionals involved in your care who witnessed the negligence, whether they realized it was negligent or not at the time. They can attest to the physician being distracted, too tired, or whatever might have played a role in your injury or mistreatment.
Final Thoughts
No one contemplates medical malpractice happening to them, but it can. If it does, one of the best ways to help you move on is getting the justice and fair compensation you deserve. The five ways above should put you on the path to getting your life back on track.