Medical professionals like doctors and nurses are supposed to provide patients with high-quality care and take measures to improve their physical or mental health. Whether you’re heading in for an annual checkup or you’re seeking emergency medical attention after an accident, it’s important that everyone on your medical team is on the same page and does what’s best for you as their patient. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen.
In the event you’re injured in a medical setting by a doctor or other medical provider, you may have grounds to file a personal injury claim. A Bowling Green, KY medical malpractice lawyer from Thomas Law Offices can evaluate your situation and help you determine how best to proceed to ensure you have what you need to recover and move forward.
Medical Facilities in Bowling Green
While there are a number of medical facilities like doctor’s offices and urgent cares in and around Bowling Green, the two major hospitals in the area are the Medical Center at Bowling Green and the Tristar Greenview Regional Hospital.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has a Hospital Compare tool that lets users look at hospital ratings based on the following categories:
- Mortality
- Safety of Care
- Readmission
- Patient Experience
- Effectiveness of Care
- Timeliness of Care
- Efficient use of Medical Imaging
Both hospitals in Bowling Green are rated as generally performing below the national average. The ratings are based on data hospitals report through the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program and the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting Program.
While you may be able to plan a visit to a facility of your choice if you’re having an elective surgery or you’re looking to choose a primary care provider, you can’t always pick a facility in the event of an emergency. If you experienced poor medical care you believe is attributed to medical malpractice, it’s essential to understand your doctor’s mistake and the extent of your injuries.
What Is Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice occurs when a hospital, doctor, or other healthcare professional injures a patient due to negligence. The negligence can occur during diagnosis, treatment, aftercare, or health management.
In order to prove you’ve been a victim of a doctor’s negligent error, you first have to show that there was a violation of the standard of care. The law acknowledges specific criteria must be followed when providing reasonably prudent health care. If the standard of care isn’t met, negligence may be established.
If you can prove the standard of care was violated, you then have to show that your injury was caused by negligence. It’s not just sufficient that the doctor violated the standard of care. Your lawyer will help you prove that your damage would not have occurred if the doctor was not negligent.
Finally, you have to show how your injury resulted in significant damages. These may be medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and more for a med mal case. These types of injury claims are costly, so a plaintiff must show costly damages for the case to be viable.
A plaintiff can only file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Kentucky if they file the proposed complaint with a Medical Review Panel. The panel issues an opinion as to the merits of the complaint. It’s important to note that just because a doctor makes a mistake, or a patient is unhappy with their court or treatment or its outcome does not mean malpractice occurred. In order to meet the legal definition of malpractice, you have to be able to prove the standard of care was breached.
How Doctors Make Mistakes
When a patient is harmed by a doctor who has failed to provide proper health care treatment, it’s essential to get to the root of the mistake. While mistakes in the medical field caused by malpractice aren’t necessarily common, certain types of errors occur more frequently, which include:
- Misdiagnosis
- Delayed Diagnosis
- Birth Injuries
- Surgical Errors
- Medication Errors
When you determine the type of mistake your doctor made, it’s time to focus on building a claim that supports your side of the story and proves you’re deserving of monetary recovery. Your lawyer will collect evidence that explains how your injuries occurred and what they should be valued at.
Two of the primary contributing factors to negligence in the medical profession are miscommunication and inexperience. Concerning miscommunication, medication orders and treatment plans, for example, often have to proceed through a chain of hospital workers. If one person in the chain makes a mistake, the patient could suffer. Regarding inexperience, some doctors may feel pressured to complete procedure or handle cases they’re not ready for. If that’s the case, especially with a procedure like a surgery, the chances of patient injury increase significantly.
Taking Legal Action for Medical Malpractice
As soon as you believe you’ve suffered an injury at the hands of your doctor, seek medical attention from a different physician. You’ll want to have your injuries recorded and an idea of what your new recovery will look like.
When you reach out to a lawyer from Thomas Law Offices, they will take notes on what you’ve been through and start building a case on your behalf. They’ll likely collect any pertinent information to your situation, like medical records and bills, hospital statements, opinions from medical experts, and information regarding other losses like missed paychecks, transportation costs, and the pain and suffering you’ve experienced.
While it’s possible your claim could settle outside of court through negotiations, that doesn’t always happen. In some cases, especially those with high values, you could end up in the courtroom. If your case needs to proceed to trial to receive an official verdict from a judge or jury, your attorney will be by your side the entire time. We realize how intimidating it can be to go up against a doctor or hospital—especially when you’re trying to focus on getting your life back in order. That’s why we’re here to support you and offer sound legal guidance.
Schedule a Consultation With Thomas Law Offices
Learning the condition of your health has worsened because of your doctor or other medical provider’s fault can be devastating—especially if your expected recovery has lengthened considerably. If you find yourself in a situation like that, a Bowling Green, KY medical malpractice lawyer can help.
When you schedule a case evaluation with Thomas Law Offices, we’ll start by listening to your story. We want as many details as you can provide on what you experienced and why you believe you have a legitimate claim. We may ask to see your medical records to determine how best to proceed. If we think a lawsuit is the best course of action, we’ll explain the process and get you started.
No matter the extent of your injuries or losses, we believe medical professionals should be held to the highest standards for providing patient care. When that doesn’t happen and a patient is injured, the negligent physicians should be held accountable. Contact us today for more information.
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