Medical professionals owe their patients a high level of care and take an oath to “first, do no harm” when treating patients. This high standard applies to physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, psychiatrists, dentists, and most healthcare professionals. While the quality of attention required may differ based on age and other conditions, when an individual has suffered an injury or illness because proper care was not provided, victims have the right to hold the medical team accountable. If you or a loved one has experienced an injury due to improper care by a medical professional, you should seek the advice of an experienced medical malpractice attorney.
Contacting an attorney as soon as possible following your accident can make a big difference in terms of your ultimate settlement amount or damages award. Bronx medical malpractice attorney Ivan M. Diamond has significant experience litigating and negotiating medical malpractice claims. Contact him today at (718) 588-2000, or online, for a free consultation, and to assess the validity of your claim.
How Do I Know If My Condition Was Caused by Medical Malpractice?
It’s typical for medical malpractice victims to not be sure at first whether their condition was caused by medical malpractice. This is another reason why it is to your advantage to contact a medical malpractice attorney.
A Bronx medical malpractice attorney can assist with further investigation, such as a review of comprehensive medical records, to determine if your condition was a result of medical malpractice. To make sure evidence is preserved, you should contact a medical malpractice attorney as soon as you suspect something is wrong.
Common Causes of Medical Malpractice Injuries
Some of the most common mistakes made by medical professionals include:
Diagnostic errors. Many illnesses, if discovered in the disease’s early stages, can be successfully treated. If a physician fails to diagnose an illness correctly, the consequences can be disastrous.
Surgical mistakes. The list of surgical procedures that can go awry is long and complicated. A few errors that can and have occurred are:
- Sponges and other tools left in a patient’s body after surgery
- Miscalculation of anesthesia amounts
- Operating on a patient for the wrong condition
- Confusing which hand or foot needs correcting
Birth injuries. During the birthing process, numerous mistakes can occur, including:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Erb’s palsy, which is paralysis in the arm’s central nerves
- Cerebral palsy
Medication errors. Unfortunately, mistakes also happen when administering medication, including:
- A prescription may not be approved for some uses by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA)
- The wrong medication is administered to the patient
Who Is at Fault for Medical Malpractice in the Bronx?
Medical malpractice is almost always rooted in negligence. It is the degree of responsibility when a medical mistake occurs that determines culpability. When discerning who has been negligent, a medical malpractice lawyer must prove the following in a personal injury lawsuit:
- The care a plaintiff received harmed him or her in a manner that caused an illness or injury.
- Medical malpractice mistakes must be proven to be a result of negligence due to a lack of care or an accident on the part of a medical professional.
- A medical malpractice attorney must prove that a plaintiff suffered harm from the injury or illness. “Harm” can take the form of financial loss, such as lost wages, or a non-economic injury, such as personal trauma.
How Do I Prove My Bronx Medical Malpractice Case?
Proving a medical malpractice case in the Bronx can be challenging. Your best bet to prove a medical malpractice case starts with retaining an experienced attorney. An attorney can help you collect evidence of malpractice and obtain medical records from before and after the medical malpractice event.
You might need to provide additional medical records to show that your injuries were not the result of a preexisting condition. An attorney will collect your testimony, the medical professional’s testimony, and the testimony of expert witnesses to help prove your case.
To establish a medical malpractice claim, you generally need to demonstrate the following elements:
Duty of Care: Establish that the healthcare professional owed you a duty of care. This is often straightforward, as a doctor-patient relationship typically implies a duty of care.
Breach of Standard of Care: Show that the healthcare professional breached the standard of care. This involves demonstrating that the provider's actions deviated from what a reasonably competent healthcare professional would have done in similar circumstances. Expert testimony is often crucial in establishing the standard of care.
Causation: Prove that the breach of the standard of care directly caused your injuries. This can involve demonstrating that, had the healthcare professional not been negligent, your injuries would not have occurred.
Damages: Document and quantify the damages you suffered as a result of the healthcare professional's negligence. This includes medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other relevant losses.
It's crucial to work directly with an experienced Bronx medical malpractice lawyer to help you collect evidence to prove negligence and hold the at-fault party accountable.
What Types of Damages Can I Receive from a Bronx Medical Malpractice Claim?
In a medical malpractice claim in the Bronx, you may be eligible to receive various types of damages, both economic and non-economic, depending on the specifics of your case. The goal of these damages is to compensate you for the losses and harm you've suffered due to the medical malpractice. Here are the types of damages you may be able to receive:
- Medical Expenses: Compensation for the cost of medical treatment, including hospital stays, surgeries, medication, rehabilitation, and other healthcare expenses related to the malpractice.
- Lost Wages: Reimbursement for the income you lost due to the malpractice, including missed work during recovery or any future loss of earning capacity.
- Pain and Suffering: Non-economic damages intended to compensate you for physical pain, emotional distress, and mental anguish resulting from the malpractice.
- Loss of Consortium: Compensation for the loss of companionship, support, and intimacy suffered by your spouse due to the injuries caused by the malpractice.
- Permanent Disability or Disfigurement: Damages awarded if the malpractice resulted in a permanent disability or disfigurement, impacting your quality of life.
- Punitive Damages: In rare cases, punitive damages may be awarded as a form of punishment for particularly egregious or intentional misconduct. However, New York law generally has a high standard for awarding punitive damages.
Bronx Medical Malpractice FAQ
How do I file a claim for medical malpractice in the Bronx?
Figuring out how to file a Bronx medical malpractice lawsuit is difficult, which is another reason why retaining an experienced medical malpractice attorney is a good idea. After you’ve had a chance to consult with an attorney about your case, they can complete the paperwork necessary to file a lawsuit and begin settlement negotiations with the doctor and/or their insurer.
Medical malpractice lawsuits can be especially complicated, given the technical expertise medical professionals must possess to accomplish complex surgeries or long-term treatments. A plaintiff in a medical malpractice case must establish negligence, which can prove especially difficult without an experienced attorney on your side. Often, medical malpractice cases require the assistance of medical experts, interviewing eyewitnesses, and analyzing complex medical documents. This type of investigation can be expensive. Again, an experienced Bronx medical malpractice lawyer will understand your case, and have the resources, such as the assistance of numerous expert witnesses, that are necessary to win a medical malpractice case.
Before consulting an attorney, do not sign any releases or other documents you are given by the defendant or insurance company. Furthermore, do not give a statement of any kind, including oral. To get the compensation you deserve, and to ensure your rights are not infringed, you should contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney immediately.
How Much Will a Bronx Medical Malpractice Attorney Cost?
At Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney, we provide free consultations, during which you can speak to an experienced attorney who will assess the validity of your case. Contact Ivan M. Diamond today at (877) 960-1702, or online, to discuss the details of your claim. Mr. Diamond is available for home and hospital visits, as well as at night and on the weekends. You will not be required to pay any attorney’s fees unless Mr. Diamond secures compensation in your case. While Mr. Diamond cannot guarantee a positive result in every case, he can promise to use his experience and skills to fight for maximum compensation for your injuries.
If you suffer injury in the Bronx due to a doctor’s negligence, you may recover compensation to help cover additional medical help that is needed and be compensated for other expenses and harms.
I signed a consent form before the treatment that caused me injury—can I still file a medical malpractice lawsuit in the Bronx?
Yes. A consent form does not relieve a medical professional of their responsibility to meet their legally mandated duty of care, and you may still file a medical malpractice lawsuit to recover compensation for injuries.
What does “duty of care” mean in Bronx medical malpractice cases?
When you go to a medical professional for services in the Bronx, you establish a doctor-patient relationship, which means the doctor or other medical professional owes you a “duty of care” that is specific to medical professionals. This duty of care requires a doctor to practice safely and act as a reasonable, competent doctor would under similar circumstances.
If the medical professional fails to meet their duty of care, they have committed medical malpractice and could be criminally and civilly liable. Especially if you are unsure, it is a good idea to contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney for help determining if a medical professional breached their duty of care to you and whether you may be entitled to compensation.
I received a settlement offer. Do I still need a Bronx medical malpractice attorney?
Yes. The doctor who committed malpractice will in almost all cases be covered by a medical malpractice insurance policy. Their insurer is likely to contact you early on with a settlement offer. Insurance companies are for-profit businesses. Every claim they pay out affects their bottom line. Thus, an insurance company will offer you the least amount possible, if they cannot deny your claim altogether.
The amount the company offers often will not cover all of your medical expenses. Beyond your medical expenses, the insurance company or medical professional could also bear additional liability in the form of other economic and non-economic damages, which compensation the insurer’s offer often does not account for.
Is there a deadline to file my Bronx medical malpractice claim?
Under New York law, a statute of limitations sets a deadline to bring your lawsuit. Courts strictly enforce statutes of limitations, so contact an attorney as soon as you learn of an injury that a medical professional may have caused. Your attorney will tell you what the statute of limitation is for your Bronx medical malpractice case.
Are medication errors considered medical malpractice in the Bronx?
Yes. Some medication errors that lead to injuries or illnesses are considered medical malpractice. An attorney can help you determine whether you have a medical malpractice case. A medication error results from prescribing the wrong medication or prescribing a medication that reacts adversely with other medications you take.
My child experienced birth injuries—do I have a medical malpractice claim in the Bronx?
Newborns can suffer from birth injuries and illnesses due to a doctor’s negligence before, during, and after the birthing process. This negligence may lead to a child being born with brain damage, a brachial plexus injury, or cerebral palsy. You should contact an attorney to verify whether your child’s birth injury results from medical malpractice.
Is going to trial mandatory in my Bronx medical malpractice case?
No. You can accept a settlement from the medical professional’s insurance company without having to take your case all the way to trial. If you do not agree with the defendants on a fair and reasonable settlement, you can pursue a trial to recover damages.
Contact Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney About Your Bronx Medical Malpractice Case
If you believe you suffered injuries or illnesses due to a medical professional’s negligence, take the first step to recover compensation by contacting Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney for a free consultation.
Recent Settlements and Results
Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney have significant personal injury law experience. While we cannot guarantee a favorable result in every case, as each case is different and depends on the specific circumstances surrounding an accident, below are some of our past success stories:
- A nursing home resident suffered serious burns while smoking without supervision; his case settled for $2.45 million.
- A client who suffered a burst aneurysm filed a case that settled for $1.5 million.
- A woman recovering from surgery was given insulin that was meant for her hospital roommate; this wrongful death claim was settled for $862,500.00.
- A client lost her balance and fell while walking to the bathroom from her hospital bed, and sustained serious knee injuries. Mr. Diamond proved that she was at risk for a fall, and that the hospital failed to respond to her repeated calls to the nurses’ station. Her case settled for $225,000.
Other Areas of Law
Along with medical malpractice, Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney also fights for clients’ rights in the following areas of the law:
- Construction law
- Work accidents
- Auto accidents
- Birth injury
- Traumatic brain injury
- Truck accidents
- Wrongful death
- Slip and fall
- Personal injury
- Premises liability
- Nursing home neglect
- Pedestrian accidents
- Bike accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
Bronx medical malpractice lawyer, Ivan M. Diamond, has practicing law since 1995, and has helped countless victims of negligence and malpractice obtain significant compensation for their injuries. His practice focuses on personal injury claims, so he can bring his years of experience in that realm to every case he handles. Mr. Diamond not only offers his clients legal prowess, but also knowledge, tenacity, and litigation skills.
Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney represents individuals throughout the five boroughs of New York City, as well as in Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, and Rockland counties.
If you or a loved one was injured in a medical malpractice accident, get in touch with Ivan Diamond Bronx Personal Injury Attorney today at (718) 588-2000. You can depend on Ivan M. Diamond; this Bronx personal injury lawyer is on your side.
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“My experience with Ivan Diamond was extremely satisfying. He produced positive results in minimal time. He was professional and hard-working, insuring results that I was happy with. I recommend the Law firm of Ivan Diamond, whom I believe is a first rate lawyer.”
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