While doctors are not perfect and may make mistakes during treatment for a patient, negligence is unacceptable and can lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit. Negligent care is harmful and can lead to moderate to severe injury, permanent damage, or even death for the patient.

To protect yourself when pursuing medical care, stay aware of these six forms of medical malpractice:

Surgical Errors

While mistakes can take place at the operating table, there are major errors a surgeon must make for the action to be considered surgical malpractice.

Surgical errors can include:

• Surgery on the wrong body part
• Unnecessary damage to surrounding organs or internal structures
• Using unsterilized instruments
• Leaving surgical equipment or other foreign bodies inside the body

These and other avoidable mistakes must be made due to negligence on the surgeon’s part. While mistakes can happen in the operating room, surgical malpractice relies on unreasonable action from the surgeon that leads to injury, permanent damage, or death for the patient.

Misdiagnosis

One of the most common mistakes doctors can make is misdiagnosis. We expect our doctors to know exactly what is wrong and create the perfect solution to resolve our medical issues. As mentioned, doctors can make mistakes and miss signs leading to a misdiagnosis.

For a misdiagnosis to be considered medical malpractice, the doctor must significantly misdiagnose a patient to the point where doctors of the same caliber would have made an accurate diagnosis. The doctor must overlook signs that most other doctors would catch.

Delayed Diagnosis

Similar to a misdiagnosis, delayed diagnosis occurs when a doctor fails to diagnose a patient in a timely manner. Doctors may need additional time to pinpoint a patient’s condition accurately. However, when the timeline for diagnosis grows too long, symptoms can worsen, or conditions can further develop and harm the patient.

Medical malpractice from a delayed diagnosis requires proof that the doctor performed a subpar assessment or provided less-than-competent insight into the patient’s issue.

Failure to Treat

In line with the previous points, failure to treat stems from the doctor’s negligence in providing care for an accurate diagnosis. Failure to treat can occur when the doctor:

• Discharges a patient before thorough care is provided
• Fails to carry out follow-up care after a treatment or procedure
• Provides substandard care or no care at all for a specific condition

Prescription Drug Errors

Prescription drugs can sometimes cause illness or injury for a patient, but this does not always constitute medical malpractice. Sometimes patients have allergic reactions to certain medications that the doctor could not have predicted.

For the prescription to be considered malpractice, the doctor must knowingly prescribe the wrong medication for a patient’s condition or prescribe a drug that they know will cause adverse reactions in the patient.

Birth Errors

Complications can happen at birth at no fault to the OB/GYN delivering the baby. However, negligent procedures during the delivery can lead to significant injury or even death for the mother or baby.

Examples of birth errors include:

• Substandard monitoring of the mother or baby
• Failure to perform emergency C-section
• Injury from the incorrect use of assistive devices
• Failure to recognize or diagnose serious complications
• Inadequate prenatal care

Additional Medical Malpractice: Sexual Misconduct

Sexual misconduct is defined as sexual impropriety or violation that misaligns with standards of care. If a doctor’s treatment includes acts of sexual misconduct, the patient can claim that the doctor breached the doctor-patient relationship, inflicting physical or emotional damage on the patient due to unwanted sexual acts.

The expert attorneys at Clark, Smith & Sizemore understand Georgia’s medical malpractice laws and can fight for injured patients! Call us today for a free consultation: 478-254-5040

Stay tuned for our six-part series on medical malpractice:

1. Georgia’s Medical Malpractice Laws, Explained
2. Stay Alert When It Comes to These 6 Types of Medical Malpractice
3. 4 Signs of Medical Malpractice That Could Affect You or Your Loved Ones
4. 5 Benefits of Hiring a Medical Malpractice Lawyer
5. Understanding Medical Malpractice vs. Negligence
6. What Is the Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice?