7 Examples of Medical Malpractice and What Illinois Residents Can Do

Medical malpractice refers to medical mistakes made by physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals that cause harm and/or death to their patients. Both medical professionals and medical institutions can be held responsible if medical malpractice is suspected. In the state of Illinois, victims have two years from the date of discovery to pursue legal action, and this is known as the statute of limitation. Here are seven examples of medical malpractice and what victims in Illinois can do about it.

#1: Surgical Errors

One of the most common medical errors that occur, happens during surgery. For example, a surgeon may perform a surgery incorrectly, or he or she may have accidentally cut an organ while operating on another organ. Other surgical mistakes that can happen include operating on the wrong patient, operating on the wrong body part, and even leaving a foreign object inside of the body during surgery. Fortunately, leaving behind objects in a patient isn’t common– but it does happen, and a medical malpractice lawyer should be contacted as soon as the patient is aware of this or any other surgical mistake.

#2: Negligent Treatment

Negligent treatment refers to hospitals, physician offices, and other medical facilities that are supposed to provide treatment not providing the proper treatment for their patients. This includes nursing homes (since most provide some level of medical care), and not providing the proper treatment for their residents. Negligent medical treatment can lead to loss of limb(s), sepsis, and even death.

#3: Medication Errors

Medication errors can occur in any type of facility that administers medication to patients or prescribes medication to patients— and this is one of the most common medical mistakes. The most well-known type of medication error is giving or prescribing the wrong medication to a patient, but medication mistakes can also be made when the right medication is given or prescribed. This can include an incorrect amount of medicine being administered/prescribed to a patient, or the medication being given at the wrong time.

#4: Failure to Diagnose

As the name suggests, failure to diagnose means that a medical professional did not accurately diagnose a patient’s condition when they could have. There are many factors that can lead to a physician failing to diagnose a condition, and one of the biggest is a diagnostic error. This is when a doctor fails to read an X-ray, MRI, or other diagnostic tests correctly. This can also result in a misdiagnosis, leading physicians to treat a nonexistent condition while there may be another serious medical condition present— or none at all.

#5: Emergency Room Mistakes

Emergency rooms see the most action in the entire hospital, and in this fast-paced environment, mistakes can be made. Emergency room physicians are trained to quickly diagnose and treat life-threatening conditions, but this doesn’t always happen. The staff may fail to recognize and treat critical conditions such as heart attacks and strokes.

#6: Defective Medical Devices

One area of medical malpractice that many people may overlook is defective medical devices, and this includes devices used in hospitals and physician offices, as well as devices that patients can use in their own homes. Examples of defective medical devices include transvaginal mesh, hernia mesh, hip implants and replacements, breast implants, cochlear implants, and CPAP machines. In the recent past, these devices have caused serious harm or death to those who used them. Personal injury lawyers, medical malpractice lawyers, and defective medical devices lawyers are available in Chicago and other cities in Illinois to help those who have been affected.

#7: Birth Injuries

Like surgical and emergency room errors, birth injuries are a specific type of hospital mistake that occurs during labor, delivery, and immediately after delivery and can affect both the newborn and the mother. However, most birth injuries affect the newborn, with cerebral palsy being one of the most common birth injuries. Other common birth injuries include shoulder dystocia and brachial plexus.

No matter where you live in the United States, if you believe you’ve been a victim of medical malpractice, you must know the statute of limitation for your state and contact a personal injury lawyer who specializes in medical malpractice. For Illinois residents (Chicago specifically), there are lawyers who specialize in medical malpractice, and maybe even certain forms of medical malpractice. The bottom line is that you should seek justice (whether for yourself or on behalf of a loved one) as soon as possible in order to receive the best outcome.