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Surgical Errors and Medical Malpractice
Have You Been Further Harmed Due to the Medical Malpractice of a Surgeon?
Surgeons play an important role in society. They are responsible for helping people who have been severely injured become healthy and return to a normal quality of life. However, they are still human and can make mistakes. The difference is that when a surgeon makes a mistake, the consequence is usually pretty severe. Determining who is responsible when a surgeon makes a mistake can be a complex process. Grossman Law Offices has over twenty years experience and has helped clients in Dallas recover compensation for surgical errors.
What Types of Surgical Errors Are Common?
Surgical errors happen more frequently then you might realize, and when they do they can cause severe harm to the patient. Surgeons can misread a patient's chart or receive the wrong chart for the patient, and since the patient is under anesthesia, the patient cannot tell them that what they are doing is a mistake.
One common surgical error is the surgeon operating on the wrong side of the body. For example, if a patient needs to have their right foot amputated, the surgeon might misread the patients chart and accidentally remove the patients left foot.
Another mistake that can happen is when the surgeon receives the wrong patient's chart and performs the wrong surgical procedure on a patient. An example of this would be where one patient needs to have one of his kidneys removed but the chart that the surgeon has states that the patient needs his knee operated on, so the surgeon operates on the knee instead of removing the kidney.
Perhaps the most common surgical mistake is where surgeon leaves a surgical instrument or piece of equipment inside of the patient's body. For example, if a patient was bleeding profusely during surgery and to stop the bleeding the surgeon placed gauze there to help contain the bleeding, but did not remove all of the gauze from the surgical site and left some inside of the patient.
Who is Liable for the Surgical Errors?
Discovering a surgical error can be obvious; if a surgeon removed your left foot instead of your right foot it would be fairly obvious. However, what can be more complex is who is liable for the injury that you received. There are two main parties that could be liable, the surgeon who performed the surgery and the hospital where the procedure was performed.
The Surgeon
The surgeon will almost always be liable for the mistake that they made during surgery. However, whether or not the surgeon is solely liable depends on their status in relation to the hospital. If a surgeon is an employee of a hospital, then the hospital is also liable for the mistake. If the surgeon is an independent contractor, then the hospital is not liable for the mistake.
For a surgeon to be considered an independent contractor, he would have to not be an employee of the hospital, but rather have privileges to use the hospital and the hospital equipment for surgery. Generally when you schedule a surgery in advance, you will be dealing with a surgeon who is an independent contractor.
The Hospital
The hospital will generally be liable for a surgical mistake in two situations, if the surgeon is an employee of the hospital or if the mistake was caused by faulty equipment owned by the hospital. Usually, a surgeon is an employee of the hospital if he performs emergency operations for the hospital. So if an emergency room surgeon performed your surgery, the surgeon is most likely an employee of the hospital.
Also, if the mistake was caused by faulty surgical equipment that is owned by the hospital, then the hospital will be liable for some or all of your injury. For example, if the equipment being used by the surgeon was owned by the hospital and malfunctioned during surgery, which caused the injury you received, then the hospital would be liable.
You Need An Experienced and Skilled Attorney to Help You Determine Your Rights
Liability in surgical cases can be a complex analysis and you need someone to help you get the compensation that you deserve for the harm you have received. Grossman Law Offices has its principal office in Dallas and has the experience and skill to get you the compensation you deserve. Our attorneys have dealt with over a hundred cases like this and know what it takes to get you what you deserve. Call one of our attorneys today for a free consultation regarding your medical malpractice case at 1-855-326-0000.
Below is a Sample of Our Recent Successful Verdicts & Settlements
$625,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death / Medical Malpractice
Total Recovery:
$625,000.00
$625,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$206,250.00
$206,250.00
Litigation Expenses:
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$400,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death / Medical Malpractice
Total Recovery:
$400,000.00
$400,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$132,000.00
$132,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$25,000.00
$25,000.00
$3,200,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death / Automobile Accident
Total Recovery:
$3,200,000.00
$3,200,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$1,280,000.00
$1,280,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$50,000.00
$50,000.00
$3,000,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death / Truck Accident
Total Recovery:
$3,000,000.00
$3,000,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$1,000,000.00
$1,000,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$180,000.00
$180,000.00
$125,000.00 Recovery - Medical Malpractice (Improper Dental Surgery Resulting in Infection)
Total Recovery:
$125,000.00
$125,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$41,250.00
$41,250.00
Litigation Expenses:
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$2,500,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death (Workplace Accident)
Total Recovery:
$2,500,000.00
$2,500,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$833,333.00
$833,333.00
Litigation Expenses:
$250,000.00
$250,000.00
$2,000,000.00 Recovery - Wrongful Death / Commercial Vehicle Accident
Total Recovery:
$2,000,000.00
$2,000,000.00
Attorney Fees:
$775,000.00
$775,000.00
Litigation Expenses:
$25,000.00
$25,000.00
