When doctors, nurses, or other health providers make mistakes that should’ve been prevented, it violates the sacred oath to “first, do no harm.” Medical errors that cause patient harm are called medical malpractice. The law says providers must properly treat people; if they don’t, patients have the right to seek what’s fairly owed to them.
But many patients give up because they don’t know where to turn. In truth, there are legal remedies that can help patients seek justice. Demanding accountability after medical malpractice isn’t always a quick, easy, or guaranteed process. This guide explains the practical legal solutions available to patients.
Filing a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
The most common legal remedy is filing a medical malpractice lawsuit against the negligent doctor, nurse, hospital, or healthcare provider. These lawsuits seek compensation for economic and non-economic damages resulting from the malpractice, such as medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
To succeed in a malpractice lawsuit, the patient must prove four legal elements:
- Duty of Care – The provider must appropriately diagnose, treat, disclose risks to, get consent from, refer, and follow up with the patient.
- Breach of Duty – Because of the improper care, the patient suffered real harm that they would not have if the healthcare provider had followed standards.
- Injury from Breach – The patient suffered harm that proper medical care could have prevented.
- Resulting Damages – The patient had terrible effects from the harm that deserves payment; experts had to check that the effects came from that harm.
If successful, the patient can recover full compensation for their injuries, including punitive damages in egregious cases. However, malpractice litigation can be complex, expensive, and time-consuming. Patients may need help from an experienced medical malpractice attorney like Bimma to litigate their claims.
Filing Hospital Grievance/Complaint
Hospitals and healthcare facilities have internal grievance procedures for addressing complaints about quality care and safety issues. Patients can file an internal grievance or complaint to notify the hospital of the incident and seek an investigation.
While an internal hospital complaint typically doesn’t result in financial compensation, it can prompt the hospital to take corrective actions, discipline providers, and prevent future negligent care. Having a record of complaints against a provider can also help establish a pattern of negligence if a lawsuit becomes necessary.
Reporting Negligence to the Medical Board
Every state has a medical board responsible for licensing providers and disciplining them for unprofessional conduct, negligence, or incompetence. Patients can file complaints about their doctor, nurse, or other licensed medical professional to their state medical board.
If the board’s investigation substantiates misconduct, they can take disciplinary action such as license suspension/revocation, probation, fines, or mandatory training.
Seeking Alternative Dispute Resolution
Going through the legal proceedings isn’t the only option for victims seeking redress. Other dispute resolution methods like mediation or arbitration can resolve malpractice cases faster and less expensively. In mediation, a neutral third-party facilitator tries to bring the parties to a negotiated settlement. Arbitration resembles a mini-trial with a private arbitrator issuing a binding decision.
While alternative resolution is typically voluntary, legislation or provider contracts sometimes mandate it before commencing a lawsuit. Patients can explore whether mediation or arbitration is appropriate for their situation. Even if unsuccessful, they can still pursue traditional litigation afterward.
Requesting Apology/Meeting
For some patients, financial compensation is secondary to receiving answers, transparency, and accountability for what went wrong. Patients can request a meeting with hospital patient relations representatives and the providers involved to discuss the incident, receive an apology and explanation, and help prevent similar occurrences going forward.
While rare, this approach can provide patients with closure without extended legal proceedings. It requires the healthcare providers to take responsibility and commit to quality improvements rather than reflexively defend against liability.
Seeking Reform of State Malpractice Laws
If patients are unhappy with the current laws in their state about medical mistakes and lawsuits, they can try to get the laws changed. They can contact lawmakers to support changes like extending lawsuit deadlines, capping attorneys fees, expanding mediation, strengthening informed consent rules, and more.
Though it likely won’t impact an individual’s case, successful advocacy can address systemic issues and prevent future harm. It requires substantial public organizing but has achieved reforms before.
Utilizing Small Claims Court
If minor damages fall below local limits for small claims jurisdiction, victims can represent themselves in small claims court without incurring legal expenses. This is most practical for limited economic damages from negligent care.
In small claims court, people can represent themselves, so they won’t have to pay for legal help. This option is best for cases where the harm caused by the mistake mainly involves financial losses due to the medical provider’s negligence.
Conclusion
In summary, victims of medical malpractice have various legal remedies at their disposal, ranging from lawsuits and alternative dispute resolution to complaints with oversight bodies and requests for transparency.
While no option guarantees success or prevents the trauma underlying the negligence, patients deserve the chance to seek fair restitution. An experienced medical malpractice attorney can advise on strong options worth pursuing based on the case’s unique circumstances.
Author Bio
Jake Hendrick is a freelance health writer and blogger for various medical publications focused on patient safety, healthcare quality, medical ethics, and health justice.
