Important Information for Atlanta Medical Malpractice Victims
When a doctor deviates from the standard of care owed to you and causes you significant harm, you need to reach out to a team of attorneys who could place your needs at the forefront of a case. During your first consultation, attorneys could give important information for victims of Atlanta medical malpractice like yourself.
With an attorney who uses cutting edge presentation technology at your side, you could rest assured that someone holds your best interests at heart and is willing to fight for the compensation you need.
How Common is Medical Malpractice?
Unfortunately, Atlanta and the State of Georgia see quite a bit of medical malpractice. It is not uncommon to hear from people all over the state who feel as though the result of a procedure was not the one they expected. Whether it was through medical treatment, through a surgery, or something happened that just doesn’t seem right, many people suspect medical malpractice.
Differences Between Malpractice and a Bad Outcome
There certainly are bad outcomes that even the best of surgeons doing their best could not have avoided. These results, while unfavorable, do not constitute medical malpractice in Atlanta.
There may even be instances where there is a bad outcome and there is negligence, but the negligence is not what led to the bad result. This would not constitute a medical malpractice claim.
However, attorneys do often see cases of malpractice because of negligent handling of medication or surgical errors which directly led to an injury. In these cases, malpractice is certainly the cause. Attorneys would then determine what is important in that case and for that Atlanta medical malpractice victim.
The Burden of Proof in Atlanta Medical Malpractice Cases
In medical malpractice, there are three main elements that have to be proven in any case. The first is a departure from the standard of care. This involves demonstrating that the doctor, surgeon, nurse, or relevant healthcare professional did not adhere to that standard of care. Attorneys would have to show that someone of similar training and experience would have done something different to avoid the bad result under the same circumstances.
In Georgia, this often means relying upon expert witness testimony. The expert must have sufficient experience diagnosing or treating the condition at issue, or performing the surgery at issue.
Establishing What Was Lost
Attorneys in an Atlanta medical malpractice case would also have to establish that there were damages, commonly known as losses. For example, a patient could have lost a limb that was not supposed to be amputated, or perhaps a victim has suffered an undue amount of pain and suffering as a result of a botched operation. Either way, these victims have a medical cost, or damage, which an attorney could seek compensation for.
Establishing Causation
The final aspect that needs to be established for a medical malpractice case is causation. Attorneys need to demonstrate that there was a link between the departure from care and the damages that were incurred.
What Is the Standard of Care?
Generally, a standard of care is the exercise of industry best practices given the circumstances. With regards to healthcare providers and physicians, these people have a standard of care to perform ordinarily as any other reasonably prudent medical professional would given the events around the action. This standard of care is applied on a case by case basis. If nine out of ten doctors were to say that they would not have performed an operation in the way the alleged negligent one did, that could constitute a deviation from the standard of care. That is why it is critical to work with an attorney who could rely on the advice of an in-house medical professional.
Let an Attorney Help
If you suspect that you were injured because of a doctor’s negligence, then you need to contact a knowledgeable attorney. Attorneys familiar with medical malpractice cases could impart important information to Atlanta victims like yourself. This information could make the difference between you thinking there might have been a malpractice event and knowing that a doctor deviated from the standard of care owed to you which led to your injuries.
Reach out to a team of attorneys willing to work with you. Call at any hour to speak directly to an attorney, consultations are free and attorneys are willing to take calls after hours.
