Medical Malpractice

Doctors, physicians, therapists, basically anyone in the medical and healthcare industry, is put on a pedestal. Never can they make a mistake. They should always be trusted. But mistakes are made. Errors are made. Negligence happens. And it is usually to the detriment of the patient.

Medical malpractice is an injury you suffer through a hospital, doctor or other healthcare professional’s negligence or omission to act in accordance with the industry’s standard of care. Negligence can be the result of errors made while diagnosing, treating, providing post-care, or managing a patient’s overall health in any capacity. A claim for medical malpractice must satisfy certain criteria in order to have a chance at success.

Criteria to Establish a Medical Malpractice Case

• The standard of care must have been violated. First, there must have been a relationship between you and the medical professional in a medical or healthcare capacity. Once the relationship is established (e.g., doctor/patient relationship), then you can identify the standard of care. The law recognizes that there are medical standards of care that the medical and healthcare community have accepted. This standard represents what a reasonably prudent health care professional under the same or like circumstances would have done with regard to such things as (but not limited to) diagnosis, prescriptions, treatment, and post-surgery care. The patient is entitled to expect that the medical industry will deliver care consistent with this standard. If the standard was violated, then negligence may have played a role.

• Harm must have resulted from the standard of care violation. There must be an injury that accompanies the negligence. If you were provided the wrong prescription but did not experience any side effects, then a medical malpractice lawsuit would not succeed. If there is an injury, the injury must have been factually and proximately caused by the standard of care violation. In other words, the injury would not have occurred but for the negligence. If there is an injury but no negligence, then there is no case. If there is no injury but negligence, then there is no case.

• Significant damages must have resulted from the injury. If you are injured, the injury must have been significant to justify the costs of a medical malpractice lawsuit, which can be very expensive. Examples of significant damages include disability, loss of income or loss of capacity to earn income, unusual pain, hardship, suffering, and/or significant medical expenses.

In Maryland, there has been a steady rise in all medical malpractice cases reported to the National Practitioner Data Bank. Accompanying this increase is a steady rate of medical malpractice payments. In Pennsylvania, there has also been a steady increase in the number of medical malpractice cases, but the rate of payments is mixed, with one notable exception:  payments between $500,000 and $999,000 increased significantly from 2006 to 2016.  Regardless of the exact numbers of medical malpractice reports and payments made, both states experience between 2,000 and 3,000 medical malpractice reports each year, and roughly half of them result in payment to the victim.

Comprehensive, Resourceful Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Our team at Gilman & Bedigian are experienced in medical malpractice and personal injury cases. In fact, the majority of our practice focuses on these matters. We understand what our clients go through, and are here to ensure you recover the compensation you most deserve. Our approach is simple: collaborate to develop the best legal strategy and allocate resources to accomplish that strategy. Our legal services will include:

• Investigation of the facts
• Collection of evidence and data
• Analysis of the evidence and the applicable law
• Strategic negotiations, thoughtful advocacy, and aggressive litigation, if necessary.

Our services are offered on a contingency fee basis. This means if you are worried about the expense of legal assistance: do not be worried. We do not get paid unless you get you compensation. If you believe you are or someone you love is the victim of medical malpractice, contact our office today either online or at 800-529-6162 for a free consultation. We are conveniently located in Timonium, Maryland, Annapolis, Maryland, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.