Some ailments, such as the common cold, are minor. They may cause some discomfort for a few days but can be taken care of at home and go away on their own. Other ailments, however, are much more serious. Some serious illnesses, such as cancer, require immediate medical care. However, if a disease goes undiagnosed or is improperly treated, it could make a bad situation worse. The victim will continue to suffer not just from the disease that is going untreated, but also possibly from the wrong treatment being administered.
In situations like this, a person in Texas may incur many expenses, including medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering. These expenses are made all the harder to bear knowing that they could have been avoided had proper measure taken place. In some cases, it may be possible to pursue plaintiff litigation in the form of a medical malpractice claim against the negligent physician or medical center. However, certain elements must exist for a viable medical malpractice claim to proceed.
First, the medical professional must have violated their standard of care. This is the standard of care that a reasonably prudent health care provider would have exercised under similar circumstances. Second, the victim must have been injured due to the health care provider’s violation of their standard of care, and the victim must show that they would not have suffered the injury but for the medical professional’s negligence. The negligence must be the cause of the injury. Third, the injury must have caused the victim to suffer significant damages. Such damages include permanent disability, great pain and suffering, substantial past and future medical expenses and loss of income.
In the end, medical malpractice claims are not always straightforward. Moreover, they oftentimes necessitate the assistance of medical experts, along with many hours of deposition and testimony. These are not claims that you want to handle alone. The information in this post does not constitute legal advice. Instead, those wishing to learn more about medical malpractice claims will want to seek professional guidance from those familiar with this area of law.
