Four Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case

Malpractice lawsuits are a serious and feared threat for physicians. They drive up physician insurance costs and can affect the way doctors practice.

In general, doctors have obligations to their patients to follow accepted medical practices. This is referred to as the standard of care.

To sue a doctor over malpractice, a patient has to prove the following elements with a preponderance of proof: breach of duty, causation and damages.

Duty of Care

The primary element of a medical malpractice case is that the victim was owed a duty by the doctor who was not fulfilled. Contrary to other types of negligence cases, medical malpractice claims often require the existence of a relationship between doctor and patient. This could be established through documents like medical records and telephone consultations. In general, doctors who treat patients must follow the accepted standards of their profession and practice.

Doctors may be held accountable for the negligence or incompetence of their staff members, such as interns or assistants. In addition, they may be held accountable for the actions of emergency medical personnel who are working under their supervision.

The next thing the plaintiff must prove is that the defendant failed to meet the standards of care in the specific circumstances. This is only proven through experts' testimony regarding acceptable medical practices and the defendant's failure comply with these standards. The other element is that the breach directly harmed the patient. To prove this your lawyer must establish the direct causality and impact between the defendant's omission of duty and your injury or loved one's death. This is referred to as causal proximate. For example, if the alleged negligent treatment wouldn't have had an adverse impact on your health, regardless of whether it was performed or not, then you wouldn't be able to recover damages for any injuries or deaths that were caused by the doctor's actions.

Breach of Duty

A physician who fails in their duty of care to the client could be held responsible for negligence. To be successful in a medical malpractice lawsuit, the injured person must prove four legal elements that a duty of care or professional care was in place; the physician breached this obligation; the breach led to injury; and the injury caused damages. The standard of care is the primary component in a medical negligence case, and is determined by expert testimony. The standard of care is defined as what a "reasonably prudent" doctor would do in similar circumstances.

A physician breaches this duty in the event that he or she departs from the standard of care when treating the patient. If a doctor fractures the arm of a patient he or she may fail to cast the patient correctly. A breach by the doctor causes the broken arm to heal improperly. This can result in a partial or complete loss of usage, and also financial damages.

Medical malpractice cases are brought in state trial courts, however under certain conditions federal courts may hear these claims. The 94 federal districts courts across the United States each have a jury panel and judge compensate the victim for the monetary losses or expenses caused by the negligence of the doctor. This includes income loss and future medical expenses. Non-economic damages are compensation for physical pain and mental distress.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are filed in state trial courts. There are instances when lawsuits can be filed in federal courts. This is typically the case when the doctor is employed by a federally funded clinic such as the Veteran's Administration, or when the doctor is a resident of other country, but practices in the United States as part of an agreement that confers extraterritorial authority.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are adversarial and require extensive legal discovery. This includes depositions, written interrogatories, and requests for production of documents. Patients who are accused of medical malpractice might also have to deal with the pressure of a jury trial and potentially be in danger of having their claim dismissed by a judge or rejected by the jury.

You must prove that medical negligence or error was the cause of your injury to win a lawsuit for medical malpractice. The injury must be severe enough that a financial settlement would substantially make up for your financial losses as well as emotional trauma. New York medical malpractice law also has certain damage caps, as well as limits on the amount an individual patient could be awarded if they successfully make an appeal.