Doctors and other medical professionals have the power to heal their patients when they are ill or injured. However, they also have the power to cause harm or to allow the condition of their patients to worsen if they fail to properly diagnose a condition or provide necessary treatment.
Medical malpractice and negligence can have severe consequences for patients and their families. Medical malpractice is also a problem that’s more significant than many know. The following information can put the issue into clearer context for you:
It is Not Uncommon for Medical Professionals to be Sued
Building a medical malpractice case is a complicated task. Like many personal injury attorneys, our Honolulu medical malpractice attorneys at Kurzban, Kurzban, Tetzeli, & Pratt, P.A., work on a contingency fee basis. That means we don’t charge any fees unless we first succeed in recovering compensation for a client. The fee we charge will usually be a percentage of the compensation we recover.
Because we use the contingency fee model, we will not waste our time, money, or resources taking on a case that is clearly unwinnable. This is particularly true when we accept medical malpractice and medical negligence cases. Because suing a medical professional is a demanding task, we carefully consider the merits of a case when deciding if we should accept it.
In other words, despite what some might claim, it is not common for attorneys like ourselves to engage in unnecessary medical malpractice litigation. If a doctor is being sued, there is almost certainly a good reason.
It may thus surprise some to learn that the American Medical Association estimates approximately one out of every three clinicians in the country will be sued at least once in their lifetime. Some types of surgeons are even more likely to be the target of lawsuits.
Again, this is not because lawyers and clients unfairly take legal action when it is not warranted. It is because medical malpractice and negligence may be more common than you think.
Medical Errors Are Among the Top Causes of Death in the US
We trust medical professionals to keep us healthy and prevent us from dying early. Unfortunately, according to one report, it appears that medical error is now the third leading cause of death in the country. Although nothing can fully compensate someone for the unexpected loss of a loved one, when someone dies as a result of medical error, their surviving family members can at least seek some financial compensation with the help of a medical malpractice attorney.
Patients Often Die When They Don’t Have To
Mistakes can be made in a hospital setting. No one is expecting medical professionals to be superhuman.
That said, data indicates that approximately 195,000 people die as a result of preventable mistakes in US hospitals every single year. Clearly, some of these deaths should be avoidable. Medical professionals and administrators must proactively examine why errors occur to determine how they can be prevented in the future.
Contact a Honolulu Medical Malpractice Attorney Today
If you or a loved one has suffered as a result of medical malpractice or negligence, the Honolulu medical malpractice attorneys at Kurzban, Kurzban, Tetzeli, & Pratt are on hand to help you pursue any compensation for which you may be eligible. Learn more about how we can help by contacting us online or calling us at 808-736-5035 to schedule a free consultation.