Understanding The Complexity of Medical Malpractice Cases

There are two possible answers here. The first one is rather quick – it’s because they utterly disrupt the faith we have in the medical institution- that’s taking care of the patient. The hospital or any other healthcare providing facility is designated and supposed to provide unquestionable and care to the extent of the highest industry standards. That’s what the patient relies on and when he doesn’t get it – the issues intensify tenfold.

The long answer is that they are particularly dangerous. A negligently caused mistake in a hospital environment can just as well cost the life of someone. That’s something that you should take into account. However, how do we quantify the conduct of a doctor and say that it’s negligent? Well, it’s not easy.

The Standard of Care

In order to determine negligence, the plaintiff would have to undeniably and unquestionably prove that the defendant, in this case the doctor, has executed his duties and responsibilities with a conduct below the standard of care. This is to say that the doctor had performed the activity worse than any other doctor with the same qualification would have in the same situation under the same circumstances. That’s why a misdiagnosis, for instance, could be a merit for a case but it also might not be.

The example is simple – if the doctor had placed the wrong diagnosis because the patient withheld valuable information that couldn’t have been made aware to the doctor, the latter can’t be found liable for that. However, if the doctor did have all the necessary information and he placed the wrong diagnosis because of the lack of further effort or in-depth examination due to his own discretion – that’s solid grounds for a trial.

Mistakes in Surgery

The same thing goes for mistakes carried out during a surgery. If the doctor failed to complete the surgery successfully but he had put all the necessary effort and went above and beyond to do whatever he could, he wouldn’t be found responsible. However, if he rushed things up, so to speak, and didn’t provide the necessary duty of care – he can be sued.

Professional Insurance

Doctors are covered by professional insurance for situations of this type. The idea is simple – they can’t perform their jobs properly if they are threatened by the possibility of a lawsuit over each and every mistake. However, there are quite a lot of specifications which need to be accounted for when it comes to these insurance policies. Sometimes, it’s a matter of tail insurance, for instance, when the accident has happened after the insurance policy had already expired. This is something that should be accounted for in advance.

However, legal recourse is possible. You will need the assistance of personal injury lawyer in Ontario to help you nail the negligence. Additionally, that will help you get the compensation that you are seeking.