When a doctor you trust commits medical malpractice, the financial, physical, and emotional repercussions are immense to say the least. And because laws surrounding medical malpractice in New York can be complex, it is often difficult to know whether a doctor truly caused your injuries. When is a health care provider guilty of negligence, and therefore responsible for your losses? When can you sue a doctor or health care provider for your injuries, and if you do, what can you be compensated for? I’ll answer these questions so you can get a sense of when it may be a good idea to contact a New York medical malpractice attorney.
Understanding New York Medical Malpractice Laws
If you are considering filing a medical malpractice claim in New York, it’s important to be familiar with the laws surrounding these claims. A good place to begin is with how medical malpractice is defined. First, any doctor or health care facility that treats you as a patient owes you, and all patients, a duty of care. This means it is their responsibility to exercise the same level of care and attention that any other reasonably prudent doctor would display in the same scenario.
If a healthcare professional, whether they are a doctor, a nurse, or another licensed medical professional who is caring for you fails to extend reasonable care to you as a patient and this failure results in an injury, this can be seen as medical malpractice. I’ll clarify this below with a few examples.
How to Prove Medical Malpractice
Each and every doctor-patient relationship is different, as is each treatment scenario, so the variety of medical malpractice situations that could occur is extensive. That said, there are some common categories of medical malpractice that we see with great frequency. They include:
- Prescribing errors (prescribing the wrong drug, the wrong dosage, or failing to consider drug interactions)
- Medication administration errors (such as with intravenous medications)
- Surgical errors
- Failure to diagnose a condition
- Misdiagnosis of a condition
Once it is discovered that a provider may have acted negligently, the next step is proving it, which can sometimes be a challenge. In order to prove that malpractice occurred, it must be proven that the patient was being cared for by the defendant, that the defendant did not properly administer the standard of care required, and that this failure caused the patient’s injury. Proving this on your own is typically not possible without understanding New York laws in great detail.
This is why, if you think your health care provider has failed to exercise the proper duty of care in your treatment, it is almost always worth it to consult with a New York medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your potential case. While we all want to trust our doctors, there is never an excuse for a doctor’s negligent behavior to result in your mistreatment or injury. Medical malpractice cases in New York state can be complicated, but an experienced attorney can help you understand your rights and how to proceed. They can also help you get the compensation you need to recover from your injuries, pain, suffering, and other losses.
Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice in New York
In the State of New York, the law requires anyone bringing a medical malpractice case to adhere to a strict statute of limitations and file their lawsuit within a specific time frame. If you have been injured from a medical error, you have 2.5 years from the date that the error occurred or 2.5 years from the last time you received care from the practitioner you are suing to file a lawsuit.
There are a few exceptions to the statute of limitations, such as in cases of ongoing treatment that caused harm, or if a foreign body remained in your body after an operation and you did not discover it until much later. Regardless of the specifics of your case, it is in your best interest to talk with a New York medical malpractice attorney to ensure that you meet all deadlines and are able to successfully file your lawsuit.
Get the Compensation You Are Entitled To
Medical malpractice cases can result in a variety of consequences, from physical and emotional to financial. By filing a claim against the person responsible, you can often secure the compensation you need to cover your health care as well as your pain, suffering, missed work time, and other losses.
To learn more about the types of compensation you could be eligible for, contact Buttafuoco and Associates for a free consultation. Our New York medical malpractice attorneys will answer your tough questions and give you more information on handling your case. We have successfully fought for the rights of many New Yorkers in malpractice cases and will fight for yours too.
Contact us today at 1-800-NOW-HURT.
