Medical Malpractice Lawyer

If you believe you were harmed in an act of medical malpractice, contact an attorney. Determining whether or not a medical professional acted negligently in the eyes of the law can be challenging which is why we offer a no-obligation free consultation. During the consultation, you can share what happened to you or your close family member and the nature of your injury that resulted. Medical provider acts of negligence can take many forms, far too many to list here and so if the circumstances of your case are not covered here, do not hesitate to contact a medical malpractice attorney.

What is a delayed diagnosis?

As mentioned, medical malpractice occurs in any number of ways. One common way in which medical malpractice can merit contacting an attorney is when the physician delays a diagnosis. A delayed diagnosis is one in which a patient visits their doctor (or the emergency room) and has a serious medical condition, but the doctor does not detect the condition. They may detect it later when the symptoms have recurred or when the patient’s health has significantly declined. Or, the doctor may never diagnose the condition and that may be left to another medical professional, but long after it should have been accomplished by a competent doctor. As a result, the patient is much worse off than they would have been had their doctor diagnosed their condition in a timely manner. Not every delayed diagnosis is a matter of medical malpractice, however. A medical malpractice attorney can analyze the circumstances, medical details, and your condition to determine if a delayed diagnosis in your case meets the legal criteria for filing a claim.

What is a misdiagnosis?

A misdiagnosis by a medical professional is not uncommon, but occasionally it can result in a significant injury or worsening of the original condition. The human body is complex, and there is an almost unlimited number of possible illnesses that a person can develop. It is unrealistic to expect a competent physician to correctly diagnose every patient 100% of the time. However, some illnesses and conditions are serious, possibly fatal, and when the patient presents classic symptoms for a particular diagnosis, a misdiagnosis is unacceptable. As an example, if a patient has lung cancer and their test results confirm this, but the physician disregards this information and provides a diagnosis of pneumonia, precious time will be lost for treatment. If that patient had been accurately diagnosed in the early stage of their disease, the success rate of treatment would have been much higher. A medical malpractice attorney can present medical documentation, medical experts, and medical diagnostic tests of the former patient to show how their condition dramatically worsened as a direct result of a misdiagnosis.

What is a medical malpractice claim?

If you have suffered a serious injury as a direct result of medical malpractice, a medical malpractice lawyer Washington, DC trusts can file a claim on your behalf against the provider and/or the hospital. The claim will include an itemized cost breakdown of the damages suffered by the victim. If the provider’s insurer refuses to offer our client a favorable settlement, we will be prepared to escalate the claim to a civil lawsuit.

Thank you to our friends and contributors at Cohen & Cohen, P.C. for their insight into medical malpractice and delayed diagnosis.