Every day, patients place their lives in the hands of medical professionals. Whether it is a simple action like filling a prescription or undergoing a complex surgical procedure—doctors, nurses, and pharmacists hold the power of life and death over the people they treat. Unfortunately, medical professionals sometimes make mistakes—and when they do, the injuries that result can be life-changing and often fatal.
If you have suffered injuries as a result of negligent hospital or outpatient treatment, you have the right to hold the negligent party responsible for your lost income, increased medical care, and pain and suffering. Call our Silver Spring and District of Columbia medical malpractice attorneys today at (301) 942-9118 to discuss your case. Your call is free, and we never charge you anything unless your case is won.
Common Forms of Medical Malpractice in Maryland and District of Columbia Hospitals
It is no secret that medical negligence claims the lives of hundreds of thousands of people every year. A recent study by researchers at Johns Hopkins linked over 250,000 deaths between 2000 to 2008 to medical errors, making medical mistakes responsible for an estimated 9.5 percent of all deaths annually in the U.S. In 2016, medical errors officially replaced respiratory illness as the third-leading cause of death in the U.S., taking fewer lives than only cancer and heart disease.
Common medical errors that result in injury include:
- Surgical errors. Patients have been injured as a result of a surgeon operating on the wrong body parts, removing the wrong limb, leaving instruments or sponges inside patients after surgery, or causing deep-tissue infections due to non-sterile operating environments. These mistakes often result in additional surgeries and permanent disabling injuries.
- Anesthesia errors. Anesthesiologists are responsible for ensuring that patients are safely unconscious during invasive procedures. If an anesthesiologist does not monitor patients carefully, the patient may fall into a coma, suffer brain damage, or accidentally awaken during surgery.
- Misdiagnosis. Misdiagnosis can occur when a doctor mistakenly assigns the wrong condition to a patient, or diagnoses a patient with a condition he or she does not have. In either case, a patient may receive weeks or months of harmful medication while delaying proper treatment for his or her true condition.
- Labor and delivery errors. Medical professionals must pay careful attention to a mother and unborn child during labor to ensure a safe delivery. If a doctor, nurse, or other medical staff member does not respond quickly to fetal distress, delays a C-section, or misuses forceps during delivery, a child may suffer birth defects and the mother’s life may be in danger. Common birth injuries may include cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, and developmental delays due to a lack of oxygen to the brain.
- Medication errors. Patients often receive a variety of oral and intravenous medications during a hospital stay. With each drug that is administered, the patient is at a higher risk of receiving the wrong dose, the wrong drug, an adverse reaction, or even an interaction between two medications. In the case of post-surgery medications such as anticoagulants, a missed dose or miscalculation in dosage can be fatal.
How Our Silver Spring Attorneys Help Victims of Medical Malpractice
In Maryland, a medical malpractice claim must be filed within three years of the date that the patient discovered the injury, but no later than five years from the date that the injury was committed. In Washington, DC, a medical malpractice claim must be filed within three years of the injury. In Washington, DC, however, the three years does not begin until the person knows or should know that they were injured as result of the medical mistake. This is called the Discovery Rule. Our first step is to discover if you are within the time limit to bring a claim, and whether a doctor, hospital, or other party did not follow appropriate steps for patient care.
Once we determine who is at fault, our attorneys focus our attention on:
- Giving you help right now. Victims of medical malpractice are often struggling with the financial and emotional toll of their injuries. We begin your case by addressing your injuries and ensuring you are getting the medical care you need to heal. We have an in-house registered nurse who can review your prognosis and recommended treatments. If you have questions, our injury lawyers will take your calls and give you the answers you need.
- Gathering evidence on your behalf. In many cases, medical professionals will often attempt to deny errors instead of admitting fault. We will carefully review your medical records for signs of malpractice, such as misdiagnosis, failure to order conclusive testing, scans and x-rays that have not been read properly, and other negligence.
- Getting the best outcome in your case. Insurers and hospital attorneys know that malpractice victims are often overwhelmed with immediate financial concerns, and use this to pressure patients into accepting a low settlement. Our goal is to resolve your case in a way that will be most beneficial to you, getting you everything you need for your economic losses and pain and suffering. We will walk you through every step of the legal proceedings, and we will go to trial if you are not offered a fair settlement. We also have a contingency-fee agreement for all injury cases, meaning we do not charge you for legal fees or expenses unless we recover compensation for you.
- Getting the best outcome in your case. Insurers and hospital attorneys know that malpractice victims are often overwhelmed with immediate financial concerns, and use this to pressure patients into accepting a low settlement. Our goal is to resolve your case in a way that will be most beneficial to you in the long-term, getting you everything you need for your economic losses and pain and suffering. We will walk you through every step of the legal proceedings, and we will go to trial if you are not offered a fair settlement. We also have a contingency-fee agreement for all injury cases, meaning we do not charge you for legal fees or expenses unless we recover compensation for you.
If you have been hurt or someone you love has been killed as a result of medical negligence, we can help you get justice and compensation for your losses. We have offices in Rockville and Silver Spring, allowing injured patients to meet with an experienced medical malpractice attorney without traveling far from home. We can also schedule a home visit if you cannot travel to one of our offices. Call us today at (301) 942-9118 or fill out the short contact form on this page to tell us more about your case.