Georgia Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Recognizing Medical Malpractice When It Happens

Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional fails to use the care that another healthcare professional of the same skill and training should ordinarily use. As a victim, you may not know when malpractice occurred, as not every negative outcome or mistake constitutes malpractice.

Below, we discuss some of the more common forms of medical malpractice that occur around Georgia.

Misdiagnosis or Delayed Diagnosis

Misdiagnosis occurs when a healthcare provider fails to correctly identify a patient’s medical condition, leading to incorrect treatment or no treatment at all. Delayed diagnosis, on the other hand, involves a significant delay in diagnosing a condition, which can worsen the patient’s prognosis. In both cases, patients may suffer harm due to inadequate or delayed medical care.

Surgical Errors

Surgical errors encompass a wide range of mistakes that can occur before, during, or after a surgical procedure. These errors may include wrong-site surgeries, leaving surgical instruments inside the patient’s body, damaging adjacent organs, or performing unnecessary surgeries. Surgical errors can have devastating consequences, resulting in prolonged recovery periods, additional medical expenses, and serious health complications.

Medication Errors

Medication errors involve mistakes in prescribing, administering, or monitoring medications. This can include prescribing the wrong medication, incorrect dosages, improper administration, or failing to consider a patient’s allergies or potential drug interactions. Medication errors can lead to adverse reactions, worsened medical conditions, or even life-threatening situations.

Birth Injuries

Birth injuries occur when negligence during prenatal care, labor, or delivery results in harm to the mother or newborn. These injuries can range from minor complications to severe conditions such as cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, or brachial plexus injuries.

Medical professionals who fail to properly monitor the health and safety of both the mother and baby can be held accountable for birth injuries.

Anesthesia Errors

Anesthesia errors involve mistakes made during the administration of anesthesia before a surgical procedure. These errors can include administering too much or too little anesthesia, failing to consider a patient’s medical history and allergies, or not monitoring the patient’s vital signs during the procedure. Anesthesia errors can lead to serious complications such as brain damage, organ failure, or even death.

Failure to Obtain Informed Consent

Patients have the right to be fully informed about the risks, benefits, and alternatives of any medical procedure before giving their consent. Failure to obtain proper informed consent can result in a medical malpractice case, as patients may undergo treatments or procedures without understanding the potential risks.