A medical malpractice attorney in Pittsburgh at Berger Lagnese & Paul, LLC is aware that hospitals should be places of recovery and healing and that medical professionals should guard our physical well-being. However, this is frequently not the case. The Institute of Medicine estimates that up to 98,000 people die annually due to avoidable medical mistakes.
According to pacourts.us, there were 1,476 medical malpractice lawsuits filed in Pennsylvania alone in 2020. A doctor misdiagnoses a patient by failing to notice a black mass of malignant tissue on an X-ray. During an unrelated surgery, a surgeon irreparably damages a patient’s nerve.
A doctor’s delayed baby delivery causes the infant to have permanent cerebral palsy. When a nurse prescribes a patient the wrong dose of medication, the patient dies.
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The definition of medical malpractice
Medical malpractice is an error made by a healthcare professional, a nurse, a doctor, a hospital, a therapist, or other.
The top-rated medical malpractice attorneys in Pittsburgh at Pribanic & Pribanic can assist with your inquiries regarding medical injuries.
What determines Medical Malpractice?
According to Pennsylvania’s medical malpractice lawsuit, a doctor’s conduct is evaluated by how closely they adhere to a concept known as the “standard of care.”
For the rest of us, a healthcare provider’s performance is the gold standard of care.
Pennsylvania medical malpractice lawsuits
You should feel safe in your hospital and under the care of an experienced medical malpractice attorney, according to Berger Lagnese & Paul, LLC. Incompetent medical professionals should not be allowed to practice, and maternity wards and hospitals should be sanctuaries of healing and new life rather than places where you have to fear for your safety or the safety of a loved one.
The Pribanic & Pribanic legal firm in Pittsburgh has the experience to file a lawsuit to recover compensation for your medical needs and pain and suffering. We work to hold the medical professional or hospital accountable.
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Examples include when a doctor misdiagnoses a patient, a surgeon’s error causes lifelong damage or an obstetrician’s error results in a baby with cerebral palsy.
‘Lawyer Of The Year for Pittsburgh medical malpractice attorneys 023 Ernest Pribanic and Victor Pribanic
According to Best Lawyers, Pittsburgh’s “Medical Malpractice Lawyer of the Year” for the past five years has been picked out by his peers to be Medical Malpractice Super Lawyer Victor Pribanic, founder of Tier 1 legal firm Pribanic & Pribanic. Both a product liability and medical malpractice attorney, Pribanic has received numerous honors. Every medical malpractice case we perform is remarkable to the client, and they’re also notable to us for that reason, according to Victor Pribanic. His victory as a medical malpractice trial lawyer is based on this fundamental tenet.
Ernest Pribanic received a second “Lawyer of the Year” award from Best Lawyers in 2023, adding to his list of accomplishments.
What is the medical malpractice statute of limitations?
The standard is two years, with a few significant exceptions. One is for children; for example, if a baby is hurt at birth by a doctor or nurse at the hospital, the parents have until the child is 18 plus two years to file a lawsuit.
The “discovery rule” is another significant exemption. For instance, under this rule, if you had your appendix removed and the surgeons left a tool inside of you that you didn’t discover for five years, you would have two years from the time of your discovery to make a claim.
The Pain of Silence on Medical Malpractice
The majority of medical mistakes are not reported, according to the Institute of Medicine, by both the doctors who make them and the patients who experience them. This silence degrades the standard of care our healthcare system provides and inhibits those who have been hurt from receiving the compensation they require to cope with the harm and impairments brought on by medical negligence.
Many lawyers would take on medical malpractice claims, but our team of attorneys has a 40-year history of managing and winning medical malpractice cases. We know what it takes to gather the facts, find the best medical specialists, and put together a strong possibility that there was negligence.
To receive the greatest result for your case, ensure you work with the top Pittsburgh medical malpractice lawyers you can find.
Medical Malpractice Types
Congenital disabilities
Risks associated with pregnancy and childbirth exist, many of which are beyond your control. However, several medical conditions, including irregularities with the placenta, preeclampsia, premature births, and extremely long labor, might be brought on by medical professionals.
Diagnostic Mistakes
Depending on a misdiagnosis, a patient’s outcome can be fatal. The results can be disastrous if a doctor treats the incorrect problem as a result of medical error, overlooking certain signs or misinterpreting the patient’s condition.
Surgical Mistakes
Both anesthesiologists and surgeons are people, just like you. However, medical malpractice has occurred if a mistake is made during surgery while you are completely under their care. Patients could sustain nerve damage, have too much anesthesia, or have a foreign body (such as a sponge or piece of gauze) left inside them.
Errors in treatment, medication, and monitoring
Even if medical errors happen all the time, missteps in medical treatment are grounds for legal action. A patient’s life may be altered irrevocably if they receive the incorrect medication dosage or are not closely enough watched by medical personnel.
How Can Medical Malpractice Be Established?
Four key elements must be proven in the majority of medical malpractice cases before you can establish that malpractice has taken place.
Patient-Doctor Relationship:
Even though it may seem clear, you must be able to demonstrate that the doctor you are suing was, in fact, your doctor. It would help if you had direct doctor-patient contact with them. There may occasionally be inquiries regarding consulting doctors.
Negligence:
Negligence occurs when a doctor hurts you in a way that another competent doctor would not have in the same situation. While doctors are expected to be adequately skilled and attentive, they are not compelled to deliver the best care available.
The Injury Was Caused by Negligence:
Patients must demonstrate that it is “more likely than not” that a doctor’s negligence contributed to their harm. If a patient was already ill or damaged before the doctor got involved, making them worse, it may be difficult to establish this. It’s crucial to understand medical negligence in the first place.
The bottom line is that medical malpractice refers to mistakes committed by doctors or other healthcare professionals that can result in serious, life-altering injuries or diseases that demand expensive medical care. Your way of life and means of support could be irrevocably altered.