New York Medical Malpractice Law – An Overview

By Author: Stella Trestrian
Total Articles: 6
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Medical malpractice refers to a doctor’s or any medical service provider’s act of negligence that causes an injury or damage to a patient. In most of the cases, this negligent act involves a medical error that possibly happens in the course of treatment or diagnosis. Some errors also take place in the management of any patients’ ailment in wrong way. The Journal of the American Medical Association states that medical negligence is the third leading cause of death in the United States, just after heart disease and cancer.

Medical malpractice law provides patients the scope to claim compensation for any injury that has been resulted due to sub-standard treatment. However, to make a successful claim it is important to contact an experienced New York medical malpractice lawyer.

Who are the potential defendants in such cases?

If the act of negligence of a medical professional causes any damage to a patient, then a lawsuit can be filed against the practitioner as a defendant. Now to be a potential defendant, the activities of the healthcare provider should deviate from the general standards of the ...
... acceptable way of medical practice. These cases also include issues like wrong medication, poor sanitation or neglectful action of a nurse. Cases are also sometimes filed against federal agencies or state that manage services and facilities offered by healthcare centers for patients’ well-being.

Compensation’s Role

Medical malpractice related laws have been formulated to safeguard and protect the rights of patients to compensation awards, who have suffered injuries due to improper diagnosis of a healthcare professional. However, it is essential to acknowledge that medical malpractice cases are quite complicated and it is not easy to win your claim.

Technically a patient can sue and seek compensation from a doctor due to his negligent act for which he has suffered any physical injury. However, sufficient resources and time are required to bring a lawsuit. Sometimes, it has been found that injuries that have healed fast and are not very significant, fail to form the potential basis of such litigation. So, it is always recommended to get in touch with an expert New York medical malpractice attorney to litigate your case successfully.

Liability Theories in Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

Negligence: Majority of the cases are brought under this liability theory. This negligence oriented theory entails medical conduct or practices that could not meet the general industry standard of healthcare in diagnosing a patient. Now, to file a lawsuit under this category, a patient is required to establish:

A duty owed by the healthcare practitioner to the patient
Applicable healthcare standard and the deviation of the professional from it. It will be considered as the breach of duty by the medical expert.
Resulting physical damage or injury caused by the doctor to the plaintiff patient.

Informed consent: Such cases involve the failure of a healthcare expert in obtaining the informed consent of the concerned patient to conduct any specific diagnosis or treatment.

Breach of contract: In such cases, a doctor promises his patient a specific outcome or result from the treatment procedure, medication and operation. Now, when the patient is not benefited by any such promised results, he may bring a warranty claim or breach of contract.

Now, to enjoy the benefits of medical malpractice law to its fullest, get in touch with a proficient New York medical malpractice lawyer to resolve your issue.

About Stella Trestrian:

I am an internet blogger and writer and I enjoy writing about different topics. In this article I would like to offer you a brief insight about New York medical malpractice law and how efficiently a New York medical malpractice lawyer can help you to litigate your case successfully.