Published by Arfaa Law Group
Unfortunately, surgery errors injure countless patients in Maryland and across the country every year. When surgical mistakes injure a patient, the patient and his or her family are left guessing how such a mistake occurred and what legal options are available to them. If you have suffered harm and you believe it was because of a surgeon’s negligence, our experienced Baltimore medical malpractice attorneys can help. At Arfaa Law Group, we are devoted to holding negligent medical professionals accountable.
An elderly woman who had both her healthy kidneys removed in what she alleged to be an erroneous surgery recently died, nine months following the procedure. She suffered a cardiac arrest and remained unconscious before she was declared dead. After her kidneys were removed, the woman was going through several hours of dialysis three days a week and was waiting to get on the national transplant waiting list. Physicians then allegedly confirmed she never had kidney cancer at all. The hospital reportedly never indicated what led to the misdiagnosis. At that point, the woman filed a medical negligence claim against the hospital, claiming that she would not have agreed to have her kidneys removed if the doctors at the hospital had not strongly advised her to do so. The hospital may now be sued for wrongful death as well.
Surgery Malpractice in Maryland
Not all undesirable outcomes after surgery are caused by medical malpractice. Instead, medical malpractice is negligence committed by a healthcare provider. Negligence takes place when the patient’s treatment is beneath what the medical community considers an accepted standard of care, causing the patient harm. In the context of surgery malpractice, the standard of care refers to the level of care that a reasonably prudent surgeon would have used while performing the same procedure under the same circumstances. In order to establish medical malpractice, the following elements must be shown:
- The surgeon owed the patient a duty of care (this can be shown by the existence of a doctor-patient relationship);
- The surgeon violated the duty of care;
- The surgeon’s violation of the duty of care was a direct cause of the patient’s harm; and
- The patient suffered harm that should be compensated.
If each of the four elements listed above are demonstrated by a preponderance of the evidence, the plaintiff will be able to recover compensation for a variety of losses including, but not limited to: medical expenses, therapy costs, pain and suffering, lost wages, disability and more.
Knowledgeable Baltimore Surgery Malpractice Attorneys
Sometimes one medical error leads to another. In the case above, an alleged misdiagnosis error led to a surgical error. If you or a loved one has been affected by medical negligence, you need to get in touch with a seasoned Baltimore medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible. At Arfaa Law Group, we understand how a medical error can impact virtually every aspect of a victim’s life, which is why we are committed to getting you the compensation you rightfully deserve. Time is of the essence in these cases so it is vital to reach out to us quickly. For a free case evaluation, please call us today at 410-889-1850 or contact us online.
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