Medical Malpractice

Maryland, Northern Virginia &Washington DC Medical Malpractice Attorneys

Our medical malpractice attorneys help clients throughout Maryland, Washington DC and Northern Virginia who are victims of medical malpractice (such as medical misdiagnosis, wrongful death, etc).

The law gives any individual who has been wrongfully injured the right to seek legal help for injuries or damages sustained as a result of negligence. It is no surprise that just like anyone else, physicians and other healthcare providers make mistakes from time-to-time resulting in injury to patients. The term "medical malpractice" means that a physician or healthcare provider--a doctor, nurse, dentist, technician, or a hospital has failed to do something that should have been done or has done something that should not have been done, resulting in injury or death.

The Statistics

This may surprise you; but every year, medical mistakes kill or injure over 100,000 people. A recent study by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences estimated that as many as 98,000 patients may be killed each year in hospitals alone as a result of medical errors. Earlier studies also found that this was a serious national problem. Harvard researchers found that 1% of a representative sample of patients treated in New York state hospitals in 1984 were injured, and one-quarter of those died, because of medical negligence.

Common Examples of Medical Malpractice (Doctors, Hospitals, Nursing Homes)

Medical malpractice can take many forms, from emergency room negligence, mistakes made during major surgery or childbirth, or failure or delays in diagnosing cancer and other medical problems.

Examples of medical malpractice include:

• Anesthesia injury
• Brain Injuries
• Birth injury in infants, including Cerebral Palsy
• Bladder and bowel punctures
• Dental errors resulting in disfigurement, jaw damage, loss of teeth or nerve damage
• Disability and Disfigurement
• Equipment malfunctions
• Gastric Bypass
• Hospital infection(s)
• Inappropriate or negligently performed surgery
• Improper setting of bones, leading to deformity of limited use
• Medical misdiagnosis of or failure to diagnose disease or injury (including failure to diagnose cancer)
• Medications and Prescription Errors
• Plastic Surgery
• Spinal Cord Injuries
• Surgical Injury (e.g. retained instruments, sponges, etc, left in the patient)
• Wrongful death

Birth Injuries: Cerebral Palsy

Modern day obstetrics is constantly improving its ability to detect major birth defects during pregnancy- often fairly early in pregnancy. Injuries and negligence committed during childbirth comprise a significant portion of medical mistakes. By some estimates, up to 60% of all births involve some form of complication. And, while many complications have a positive resolution, others do not. In these cases, the results can be devastating to a family. For example Cerebral Palsy, or CP, can be caused by a lack of oxygen to the brain or trauma to the head during labor and delivery. This can be caused by excessive force, failure to do a C-section in a timely manner, or from other decisions made during delivery. Characterized by a lack of muscle control and body movement, CP can result in a lifetime of special needs. If Cerebral Palsy or another birth injury has affected your family, please contact us to talk about it and schedule your complimentary consultation today.

Cancer: Failure to Diagnose in Time

When cancer is not properly diagnosed, the results can be devastating. In fact, one of the leading causes of medical malpractice cases today is failure to diagnose cancer. Sometimes, doctors fail to order the right tests or simply mistake the signs of cancer for another illness. Whatever the reason, the outcome is not acceptable. Because a timely diagnosis can be such a critical factor in the survival rate of cervical, breast, prostate and other types of cancer, mistakes like this can result in deaths that could have been prevented. If you suspect a loved one's cancer should have been caught earlier, contact us to schedule a complimentary consultation.

Infection(s)

People also contract serious infections while being hospitalized. Two million hospital patients acquire infections that result in 90,000 deaths from infections alone each year. That represents a rise of 36 percent since 1980, which coincides with the proliferation of bacteria capable of resisting the most potent antibiotics. The Center for Disease Control says that many hospital personnel stubbornly fail to follow basic infection control, such as hand washing between patient contacts.

Medical Misdiagnosis of Disease or Illness

A medical provider's failure to diagnose a patient's condition may give rise to a valid medical malpractice claim. Medical misdiagnosis often occurs when a provider fails to run certain diagnostic tests or fails to diagnose a condition in a timely manner.

Medications & Prescription Drug Errors

The courts treat malpractice committed by a pharmacist in the same manner as medical malpractice. If a patient receives the wrong medication for a condition or the wrong combination of medications and suffers an injury as a result, a claim against either the doctor who prescribed the medication or the pharmacist who filled the prescription may be warranted.

Surgical Injuries

A recent study by the New England Journal of Medicine said that surgical teams accidentally leave clamps, sponges and other tools inside about 15,000 patients each year. Most of the lost objects were sponges, but cases also included metal clamps, electrodes, and even retractors. We help people who have been injured during a surgical procedure. If a surgical injury has affected you or a loved one, contact us to schedule a complimentary consultation today.

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