Doctors, nurses, hospitals, and pharmacists can be held liable for medical malpractice when they commit an act that falls below the reasonable standard of care and needlessly harms or kills their patient.
If you or a loved one were a victim of medical malpractice in Clearwater, you might be able to recover compensation for your injuries or a family member’s death. A Clearwater medical malpractice lawyer from Distasio Law Firm can help you fight to hold all liable parties accountable for their actions. Our experienced personal injury attorneys can also evaluate your case for free before we begin working on it.
Your Medical Malpractice Case May Entitle You to Compensation
When pursuing compensation in a medical malpractice case, it might be obvious to fight for money to cover your medical treatment costs. However, you could be entitled to various other damages, depending on how the medical error affected you.
These cases are rare and unique to the individual, and our team wants to ensure every damage you’ve experienced is accounted for.
You May Be Able to Recover for Financial Damages
Some of the first damages we will calculate will involve any financial setback you face as a result of your medical-related injuries. These economic damages can be measured by receipts, invoices, bills, and other financial documents.
You may pursue compensation for:
- Medical expenses
- Mileage costs to go to medical appointments
- Current income loss
- Future income loss
- Reduced earning potential
- Out-of-pocket medical expenses, such as prescription medicines
- Care services due to limitations from your injuries, such as at-home care or childcare
We Will also Fight for Compensation for Non-Economic Losses
A medical error can do more harm to your life than just your wallet. The most important losses are often the physical and emotional damages you suffered because of your injuries.
There is no set formula to calculate these human losses. It’s our Clearwater medical negligence lawyers job to demonstrate their value. These non-economic damages may include:
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish or emotional distress
- Psychological trauma
- Permanent disability or loss of bodily function, such as vision
- Physical disfigurement, including wrong amputation and scarring
- Loss of quality of life
- Loss of independence
- Loss of consortium
Other types of general damages may be listed, which we will take note of as we review your case.
If You Lost a Loved One Due to a Medical Error
If your family member died due to an instance of medical malpractice, you might be able to sue on their behalf in a wrongful death action. Surviving family members in a wrongful death case may be able to recover compensation for:
- Funeral expenses
- Loss of consortium
- Loss of companionship and/or parental guidance
- Loss of financial support from the decedent
- Pain and suffering, loss of companionship for a spouse, and loss of parental guidance for a child.
Time Is Limited When it Comes to Filing a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
Per Florida Statutes §95.11(4)(b), you generally have two years from the date when you knew or should have known that the medical malpractice occurred to take legal action, but no more than two years in total from the date of the malpractice.
If this two-year period expires before you act, you may lose your ability to take legal action against the healthcare providers who caused you unnecessary harm.
We can discuss how the statute of limitations pertains to your case during your free consultation.
How a Medical Malpractice Lawyer in Clearwater Florida May Argue Your Case
Once hired, our Clearwater attorneys can take steps to argue that you were, in fact, a victim of medical malpractice. To do this, we will produce evidence for the following elements:
- Doctor-patient relationship: To file a medical malpractice claim, we will establish that you and the medical care provider had a physician-patient relationship. This means that you hired the doctor to provide a service for you.
- Duty of care:We can demonstrate that the medical professionals treating you had a legal obligation to provide services that were consistent with the medical community’s standard of care.
- Breach of duty: We can establish that the medical care provider violated their duty of care to you. In Florida, it may be necessary to secure a statement from a qualified medical professional that the care you received fell below a reasonable standard, and other medical practitioners would have acted differently in a similar situation.
- Causation:We can connect the medical care provider’s negligence to your injuries through detailed medical reports, expert witness testimony, and other relevant documents.
- Damages:We can quantify the value of the damages you suffered. This can come from hospital bills and statements from medical and vocation experts who estimate your future cost of treatment and the impact of the malpractice on your life.
Florida Defines Medical Malpractice as a Failure to Exercise Reasonable Care
Medical malpractice, or medical negligence, is defined in Florida Statutes §766.102. Medical malpractice refers to the failure of a medical care provider to exercise reasonable care, knowledge, or skill when rendering services that a similarly trained and experienced professional would normally use under similar circumstances.
Medical professionals who are held to this standard include:
- Physicians
- Surgeons
- Dentists
- Psychologists
- Therapists
- Nurses
- Staff members at a medical facility
- Facility owners
Different Types of Medical Malpractice
There are a variety of ways that a medical care provider can cause fatal injuries and bodily or psychological harm to a patient. Some common instances include:
- Medication errors: Prescribing the wrong drug or dosage can lead to severe injuries or even loss of life. Additionally, a doctor failing to review a patient’s complete medical history or current medication before prescribing a new drug can be held liable if there is an adverse reaction.
- Birth injuries:If doctors do not exercise reasonable care during prenatal care and childbirth, the newborn can suffer a traumatic brain injury, nerve damage, and fractured bones due to mishandling.
- Surgical errors: Surgical errors can constitute malpractice in several ways. The surgeon may make an error while operating, such as cutting an organ or performing the wrong surgery. Inadequate postoperative care leading to complications or additional procedures may also be malpractice.
- Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis: By failing to diagnose a patient properly or promptly, a doctor’s actions can be deemed negligent.
Other examples of medical malpractice include using a defective medical device, conducting non-consensual surgery or treatments, using anesthesia erroneously, and more.
Hire a Clearwater Medical Malpractice Attorney from Distasio Law Firm Today to Fight for You
At Distasio Law Firm, we believe it is unfair for medical malpractice victims to shoulder the economic and non-economic damages caused by medical care providers. We aim to defend your legal rights and protect future patients from the negligent medical care provider that hurt you.
Call Distasio Law Firm now to see how a Clearwater medical malpractice lawyer can help you.
