Medical negligence occurs when a physician or any medical professional fails to do the duty that they’ve sworn to, in giving you, the patient, the care that you need. You’ve even suffered complications as a result of this negligence. The wrongful act of the health professional could also be one that was done deliberately, or by accident. Whatever the circumstance, if you’ve suffered from this failure to act correctly, you have a recourse that’s proper for you to take.

Knowing what to do when you think you have experienced medical negligence can be the difference between suffering in silence and ending up the victim of a doctor’s malpractice and holding a physician accountable to potentially criminal behavior. To help you along that line, here are seven tips or courses of action that you can take when you know you’ve been a victim of medical negligence.

Switch to a new doctor

If you suspect medical negligence, the first thing you should do is find a new doctor. Any error in diagnosis or treatment needs to be addressed as soon as possible as your health is your first priority.

Do this even before you think about the legalities that you’ll want to pursue later on. Remember that your health is always of paramount importance, so any mistake done will have to be corrected as soon as possible, to prevent further damage or injury to your body.

Here’s what your new doctor can do for you, to start correcting the damage done by your previous physician:

  • Your new doctor will need to review your medical records, so you will need to request a copy to be sent to him or her.
  • Your new doctor will then either perform tests to determine a correct diagnosis or immediately take steps to address the damage caused by the first doctor.
  • Based on your medical records and your presenting symptoms, if it is determined that your previous doctor misdiagnosed you, your new doctor will focus on providing you the appropriate medical care.

It is important to follow the treatment plan your new doctor provides you. Doing so will provide a record of the appropriate and effective care for you to provide your medicare fraud attorney your lawyer, or more specifically, your medical negligence attorney.

Doctor-patient relationship

A doctor-patient relationship simply means that a doctor agreed to either provide you with a diagnosis or provide you treatment for an illness or injury. When gathering evidence to prove that medical negligence occurred, you will need to prove a doctor-patient relationship existed. Without this proof, it is impossible to show the doctor was negligent. First, you can start with the kind of injury that you had, as this can show the extent of the services that the doctor has given to you. Then, from here, you can show the successive visits and treatment plans that you may have already undertaken.

Fortunately, this is one of the easiest things to prove and is almost never disputed. That said, this first step is required as it shows the court that the doctor had an obligation to provide you competent care.

Document symptoms

In addition to seeking another doctor’s care, you should keep your records regarding your symptoms. You can do this by keeping a journal that documents your health. In your journal, you should describe in as much detail as you can the symptoms you are experiencing following the medical you received.

It is important to write as frequently as possible, so it is recommended that you write something each day. Doing so will create a record outlining exactly how you feel and what you have to endured as a result of the medical error. Because your journal can be used as evidence when building a medical-negligence case, it is important to provide as much detail as possible.

Request medical records

Another important step in gathering evidence is to request a copy of your medical records. Because the records are a critical part of your case, you need to obtain copies as soon as possible. Your medical records document the symptoms you told the doctor about, and they provide a detailed medical history of your ailments. Finally the records include all the tests that were performed and any medications that where prescribed to you.

Note: it is recommended that you request a medical record retrieval before filing a claim to ensure that your provider does not try to change your records.

Negligence

It is important to understand that not being happy with the care you received does not necessarily mean that medical negligence occurred. It can be hard to know where you stand legally, so you might find it useful to follow this link for professional help. To determine if negligence occurred, you must prove the doctor was negligent regarding your treatment or diagnosis.

This means that you must show specifically that you were harmed in a way that would not have occurred under the care of a competent doctor under that exact same conditions. To do this, courts must determine if the doctor in your claim was “reasonably skillful and careful.” If the answer to this question is yes, you have no real case.

That said, it requires another medical expert–your new physician– to explain how the doctor did not provide this basic standard of care. Additionally, hiring a lawyer versed in medical negligence law is the only way to navigate this type of legal field.

Injury

In addition to proving your doctor violated the standard of care and was negligent as a result of not providing appropriate care, you must also provide proof that the injury you sustained would not have occurred in the absence of the doctor’s negligence. Your journal entries, subsequent care from a different physician, and your medical records are all important documents to prove actual injury, which supports your case.

Damages

Finally, it is important to show damages. For instance, even if a doctor is proven to have been negligent, if you were not harmed, you can not sue for damages. Documenting how your life was impacted is the only way to prove damages, and detailing this information in your journal is an excellent way to document this.

You have to show the extent of the adverse effects that you now experience, due to the faulty action of the medical professional.

Here, the damages that you may have experienced can include physical, mental, emotional, psychological, and even financial damage. Here are some ways for you to prove damages:

  • Writing about any physical pain or mental anguish you have suffered is a good start.
  • Other ways to show the impact is to provide copies of additional medical bills and lost wages.

Final Word

When you’re trying to heal from whatever health problem it is that you have, the last thing that you want to happen to you is to be falsely and negligently treated by your doctor. Naturally, it’s going to be your expectation that the doctor is there to help you heal. Unfortunately, there are still many physicians in the world that commit mistakes. They are still human after all. Some, by accident, while others, on purpose. If you happen to be a victim of negligence, don’t stop in silence by not pursuing action. Start by following through the tips enumerated above, then get hold of a lawyer that can help you let your voice be heard.