An unfortunate but common part of life is occasionally needing medical treatment. Each year, people in New York visit emergency rooms, urgent care facilities and similar places for medical care. Sometimes, these patients become victims of medical malpractice.
Understanding medical malpractice
By definition, medical malpractice happens when healthcare providers or professionals commit professional negligence that results in harm. That’s not to say that a medical professional is exempt from making a mistake – no one is. However, these individuals must follow reasonable guidelines a peer in their field would have also done.
How to prove medical malpractice happened
A crucial aspect of any malpractice case is proving professional negligence happened. For this to happen, the party pursuing a claim against a medical provider must prove:
- A medical provider owed a duty of care to a patient.
- This same provider breached standard of care
- This breach caused an injury or multiple injuries to a patient
- A patient’s injury resulted in damages.
The importance of causation
Whether you suspect malpractice from a doctor, dentist or other professional, causation is a critical component of proving malpractice occurred. Proving causation can also be difficult when a medical provider and their legal team are trying to disprove your legitimate injuries.
For instance, it would be difficult to prove medical malpractice if your injuries may also result from a long-term condition. If your unfortunate outcome that led to injuries would have happened under anyone’s care, proving malpractice may also be challenging.
If you suspect you’re the victim of malpractice, you could obtain damages against a medical company or specific professional. Medical malpractice survivors can typically seek punitive and compensatory damages.