We go to see the doctor when we are sick or hurt, we depend on them to make us well. We don’t expect to visit our doctor and come home in worse shape than when we left. However, things happen and doctors aren’t perfect. They make mistakes. There are lawyers who specialize in nothing but medical malpractice cases. If you’ve been injured due to medical malpractice, you need to contact a Roswell medical malpractice lawyer.
When doctors prescribe us medication, we take it. We don’t ask questions, we expect that they know what they’re doing. We presume that they are looking out for potential drug interactions or allergies. Also we certainly can’t expect to know this information ourselves. We also can’t depend on a pharmacy tech to catch a mistake of this magnitude.
Doctors and other medical professionals carry malpractice insurance because they make mistakes. They understand that they aren’t perfect. When they do make mistakes, people get hurt and even die. You could be a victim of medical malpractice. This is why you need a Roswell injury lawyer.
What is Medical Malpractice and Why Do We Need a Roswell Medical Malpractice Lawyer?
Medical malpractice is when a doctor or nurse doesn’t meet their standard of care while treating a patient. Doctors are held to a higher standard than the average employee. They must meet a much higher standard of care. Medical malpractice can involve something as simple as prescribing the wrong medication. This is because prescribing the wrong medication can kill somebody. It can also be something much more serious like amputating the wrong limb.
What do we mean when we say standard of care? A standard of care is simply the quality of treatment that a doctor is expected to provide. When we define a standard of care, we have to look at the patient’s condition and treatment. We also have to look at the doctor’s specialty. Certain doctors are licensed to perform certain types of procedures. If they don’t perform these procedures properly, they can be guilt of malpractice.
A very common example of medical malpractice is when a doctor leaves a sponge in a patient’s body during surgery. Sponges can cause infections that take months to recover from. They may even require additional surgeries to correct the problem. Things like this put a patient at unnecessary risk. Even if he comes out okay, he may still have a claim for medical malpractice. It is the job of your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer to get compensation for these issues.
Another example of medical malpractice is when a doctor fails to diagnose a patient with a deadly illness. There have been cases where doctors don’t notice that a patient has symptoms of diabetes or cancer. As a result, the patient becomes very ill or even dies.
Your Roswell Medical Malpractice Attorney Will Make Sure You Meet the Statute of Limitations
Georgia has specific laws regarding medical malpractice cases. Your medical malpractice attorney in Roswell, Georgia only has a limited time in which he must file your claim. This is referred to as the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations in Georgia is two (2) years. This means that you only have two years from the date of the incident to file your claim. Your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer will do what it takes to make sure you meet this deadline.
There are situations where the statute of limitations is put on hold. For example, if you had no idea you were injured until much later, the statute doesn’t run. The question will be on what date should you have expected to notice the injury. This is very common in misdiagnosis cases. How are you supposed to know you have terminal cancer if your doctor failed to diagnose you in the first place? Your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer will have to demonstrate that you didn’t know for that period of time, he can extend the statute of limitations period.
If you miss the statute of limitations, your lawsuit will be barred. Even an experienced medical malpractice attorney in Roswell, Georgia will not be able to overcome this obstacle. The courts don’t make exceptions to this rule. This is why you need an experienced medical malpractice attorney in Roswell, Georgia. They know the court rules and will do what they can to preserve your deadline.
Roswell Medical Malpractice Lawyers Handle all Types of Cases
There are hundreds of different types of medical malpractice cases. Roswell medical malpractice attorneys have seen all kinds of cases. You may sustain serious or minor injuries. It depends on the type of malpractice you’ve experienced. Almost all medical malpractice claims involved physical injuries. There are times when your injuries may be mental or psychological in nature. However, these cases are rare and very hard to prove.
Roswell medical malpractice attorneys see all sort of cases. Some of the most common types of medical malpractice cases include:
- Misdiagnosis – If a doctor fails to diagnose a patient with a deadly or serious illness, it is called misdiagnosis. For example, perhaps he says you have stage 1 cancer when you really have stage 4 cancer. A Roswell medical malpractice lawyer will have a solid case for medical malpractice in this situation.
- Surgical errors – We see a lot of surgical errors when it comes to emergency hysterectomies. If a doctor performs a hysterectomy when it wasn’t required or approved by the patient, he will be liable for malpractice. An experienced medical malpractice attorney in Roswell, Georgia will try to get as much compensation as possible for a case like this.
- Failure to treat – There are times when a doctor decides not to treat a patient. He may think the patient is exaggerating his symptoms. Or, he doesn’t think a situation warrants further testing. The only difficulty will be in your Roswell medical malpractice attorney proving that your injuries were worse because of his negligence.
- Birth injuries – These are the worst sort of malpractice cases. When babies are injured or died during the birthing process, it could be due to medical malpractice. These cases carry very high damages.
- Prescription drug errors – Doctors are required to check for drug interactions and allergies. If he fails to do this, he will be liable for damages.
Medical Malpractice Attorneys in Roswell, Georgia Will Demand you be Paid for Your Damages
If you or a loved one are the victim of medical malpractice, you should demand compensation for your damages. The damages for a medical malpractice claim can range from thousands to millions of dollars. Experienced medical malpractice attorneys in Roswell, Georgia have handled both large and small cases. The amount of your claim will depend on the nature and severity of your injuries. It also depends on the age of the plaintiff.
Babies and children who are injured due to malpractice often lead to very high settlements. Judges and juries are very sensitive to child injuries. They tend to award very high amounts of pain and suffering and even punitive damages. Your Roswell medical malpractice attorney is going to work hard to get your family the compensation you deserve.
Georgia laws both economic and non-economic damages. Your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer is going to push to get you as much money as possible. These damages are broken into economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages are designed to compensate the plaintiff for money they have lost as a result of the injury. This is usually broken down into:
- Time missed from work
- Lost future earnings
- Medical bills
- Future medical bills
Your Roswell medical malpractice attorney is going to work hard to get you all the economic damages to which you are entitled.
Non-economic damages are comprised of mostly pain and suffering. Thankfully, Georgia does allow pain and suffering. Your lawyer will use this to his advantage while negotiating with the insurance company to try to settle your claim. If this isn’t possible, your medical malpractice attorney in Roswell, Georgia may have to file a lawsuit. It is in everybody’s best interest to settle a malpractice claim.
Why Would Your Medical Malpractice Attorney in Roswell, Georgia Settle Your Claim?
Nobody wants to go to trial. This is true no matter what type of case it is. A defendant can delay a decision for years by filing motions and requesting continuances. It could be years before you see a dime. In a medical malpractice case, you don’t have the luxury of time. You could be suffering a terminal illness and may not survive long enough to see a trial through. Your Roswell medical malpractice attorney will work with the insurance company to try to settle your claim.
The first thing you need to do is file a claim with the defendant’s insurance company. If they pay your claim, great. You can use the money to take care of your medical bills and your family. Often times, however, the insurance company will deny your claim. They wait to see if you actually retain an attorney before they take your claim seriously. If this happens, you will want the services of a medical malpractice attorney in Roswell, Georgia. This is not something you want to handle by yourself. The insurance company will have attorneys working for them. You need to do the same.
Medical malpractice attorneys in Roswell Georgia know that medical professionals in Georgia are required to carry malpractice insurance. This wasn’t always the case. This is to ensure that patients who have suffered injuries due to a doctor’s negligence have a way to be compensated. Up until 2010, Georgia limited damages in medical malpractice cases to $350,000. Thankfully, in 2010 the Supreme Court decided that this limitation was unconstitutional.
Contact a Roswell Medical Malpractice Attorney Today
There is now no limit on how much a plaintiff can recover for pain and suffering in a malpractice case. Keep in mind, however, that judges have this figure in mind when deciding cases. So do insurance companies when they are negotiating a settlement. Your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer is well aware of this. They will use this figure as a target when settling your case.
If you or a loved one have suffered an injury due to medical malpractice, you need to contact a Roswell medical malpractice attorney. You are going to want an experienced professional by your side to go up against the insurance company. Your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer knows the laws in Georgia and knows what it takes to prove your case.
Contact a Roswell medical malpractice lawyer today and schedule your free initial consultation. This gives you an opportunity to ask any questions you may have. It also gives the Roswell medical malpractice lawyer a chance to review your case and see what it may be worth. He can go over your options with you and decide how you’d like to proceed.
Ideally, your Roswell medical malpractice attorney will be able to talk to the insurance adjuster and get your claim paid. He will let them know you intend to file suit if your claim isn’t paid. He knows that the insurance company wants to settle. Nobody wants to go to trial. Trials are time consuming and expensive. They also present a risk to both sides. There is no way to know for sure how a jury will decide. They may award millions but they may also find the defendant not guilty.
When you meet with your Roswell medical malpractice lawyer for the first time, make sure you bring the following information with you:
- All correspondence you have received regarding your claim
- Medical documentation regarding your injuries
- Proof of lost wages
- Contact information for any witnesses
- The name and contact information for any doctors who have treated you in the past
Your personal injury lawyer Roswell will need this information in order to prepare your case. He’ll also need this information to negotiate a high settlement with the insurance company. He wants to get you as much money as possible. He also wants to get your family justice. The initial consultation is free and you pay nothing until you settle your case!
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