Sumter Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Doctors have vast amounts of education, training, and experience in the medical field. In contrast, their patients usually have none of these things. Because of this great disparity, doctors have a very high duty of care. Since their patients literally place their lives in their hands, doctors have a fiduciary duty. They must set aside all other concerns, like work-life balance or making money, and only focus on what’s best for their patients.
At The Stanley Law Group, our Sumter medical malpractice lawyer also has a high responsibility. However, unlike many area doctors, we take our responsibilities very seriously. These responsibilities usually involve simple actions, like thorough case evaluation, everyday hard work, and open two-way communication. It’s easy for us to meet this standard, because in our experience, the best attorney-client relationships are partnerships. This partnership helps ensure maximum compensation for your serious injuries.
Pre-Procedure Injuries
The high duty of care begins when doctors meet their patients for the first time. Sometimes, doctors and patients have lots of time to develop a relationship. Other times, the process is much more compact.
Prenatal care is a good example. Some mothers begin seeing their doctors during their first trimesters and stay with the same doctor. Others don’t see the doctor until later or they change physicians for some reason. Still other mothers are hospital walk-ins with no prenatal care. In all these cases, the duty of care is the same.
Misdiagnosis is one of the most common pre-procedure injuries. Largely due to a lack of communication and lack of data, the misdiagnosis rate is about 20 percent. In high school, an 80 was a passing grade. But in this context, because of the higher duty of care, an 80 is a failing grade.
Injuries During a Medical Procedure
Anesthesia errors and surgical mistakes are very common medical mistakes in South Carolina. Once again, because of the high duty of care, there’s usually no such thing as a medical “accident.” Instead, almost every error is medical negligence.
Many anesthesiologists don’t thoroughly review patient files, so they administer medicine that triggers a severe allergic reaction. Other anesthesiologists don’t administer enough medicine, so the patient wakes up during the procedure. Other anesthesiologists administer too much medicine, and the patient doesn’t wake up.
Improper instrument sterilization injuries follow this same pattern. Usually, the surgical team super-heats instruments to sterilize them. If they aren’t hot enough, dangerous bacteria enters the patient’s vulnerable body. If they’re too hot, they cause searing burns.
Post-Procedure Errors
Once patients enter the recovery room, many medical teams believe they are out of the woods, so they let down their guards. This relaxation often sets the stage for serious injury.
We mentioned bacterial infections above. These infections are very common at hospitals. All patients have pre-existing medical conditions. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be at the clinic, hospital, or other medical facility. Therefore, they are especially susceptible to such injuries.
Improper cleanliness procedures often cause bacterial infections. Other times, the medical treatment team doesn’t react quickly enough or doesn’t relay the proper information to a separate recovery team.
A defective product could be involved as well. For example, many doctors prescribed Philips breathing machines for patients recovering from sleep apnea procedures. The foam in these machines could break up and enter the patient’s lungs, causing cancer and other serious chronic illnesses.
Reach Out to a Diligent Sumter County Lawyer
Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced Sumter medical malpractice lawyer, contact The Stanley Law Group, P.A. You have a limited amount of time to act.
