Medical malpractice can unfortunately change the life of a patient for the worse in New York. For instance, a patient may end up suffering permanent injuries and complications that are both costly to treat medically in addition to leading to a poor quality of life. Medical malpractice can also cause emotional scars for the patient who is a victim of it.
Recent research shows that a little more than seven percent of doctors had malpractice claims filed against them each year. About 78 percent of these claims, however, resulted in no payments. The percent of doctors accused of medical malpractice is actually higher for doctors in the specialty area of obstetrics and gynecology, with over 10 percent of OBGYN doctors facing lawsuits.
Doctors with specialties in areas such as general surgery, neurosurgery and thoracic-cardiovascular surgery are even more likely to be accused of malpractice. The issue of malpractice often stems from the problem of poor communication. For instance, a doctor may order a test and ask that it be done immediately; however, for some reason, the test is never done and the patient ends up dying. In many cases today, doctors do not spend much time with patients, and this can also lead to serious communication issues.
When doctors do not perform their duties properly due to negligence, it is within the rights of their patients to seek to hold them accountable through the civil court system. A thorough understanding of what facts have to be proved will likely be required in order to prevail in a medical malpractice case in New York. Liability has to be established to the satisfaction of the court hearing the case before claims for monetary damages will be decided.
Source: nwherald.com, “Miscommunication at root of medical malpractice, McHenry County doctor, attorney say”, Emily K. Coleman, Jan. 16, 2016
