Hospital accidents are all too common. When doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals fail to properly treat their patients, they can seriously harm them. Even though the victims entered a hospital with the goal of improving their condition, they may end up leaving in a much worse condition. Sometimes, a hospital accident results in fatally injuring a patient. A hospital accident lawyer can help protect your rights if you were injured by a medical professional.
What follows are some of the more common types of hospital accidents which can result in serious or fatal injuries:
Delayed Diagnosis or a Misdiagnosis
When a patient’s condition is misdiagnosed by a physician, or the physician delays in diagnosing the patient, the condition can significantly worsen. This is because the patient is treated for the wrong condition or not treated at all. If your hospital accident lawyer is able to prove that a reasonably competent and skilled physician would not have made the same mistake, you may be eligible for a substantial settlement.
Prenatal and Childbirth Injuries
There are many injuries that can occur before or during childbirth when the physician is negligent or careless. It’s not just during the birthing process when the child or the mother is at risk, as our hospital accident lawyer can tell you. Here are some of the most common prenatal and childbirth injuries:
Prenatal care. The physician or obstetrician’s actions or inactions can cause a hospital accident in this way:
- A misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose a condition that the mother is suffering from such as Rh compatibility with the baby, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, anemia, or hypoglycemia.
- A failure to diagnose an unborn baby’s birth defect.
- A failure to diagnose a disease suffered by the mother that can be passed onto the unborn child. For example, neonatal lupus or genital herpes.
- A failure to diagnose an ectopic pregnancy.
Childbirth. The physician or obstetrician’s actions or inactions can cause a hospital accident in this way:
- A failure to diagnose birth complications such as an unusually large baby, or an entangled umbilical cord.
- A failure to recognize that the baby is in distress and to appropriately respond.
- Misuse of medical instruments such as forceps.
- When the obstetrician does not order a cesarean section, even when the mother or baby’s life is at risk or when they are at risk for serious injury.
Medication Accidents
Hospital accidents involving medications can be catastrophic for the patient. Our hospital accident lawyer is all too familiar with the many ways in which medication errors can occur. Some of the most common incidents include:
- The patient is prescribed too high a dosage.
- The patient is prescribed too low a dosage.
- The patient is prescribed the wrong type of medication.
- The patient is prescribed a type of medication they are allergic to even though they had notified the medical staff of their allergy.
- The nurse administers the wrong dosage.
- An equipment malfunction causes the patient to receive the wrong dosage.
A Hospital Accident Lawyer Who Cares
If you or a family member was injured in a hospital accident, contact a medical malpractice lawyer Salt Lake City, UT trusts to find out if you may qualify for seeking compensation from the responsible party.
Thank you to our friends and contributors at Rasmussen & Miner for their knowledge about hospital malpractice.
