Conshohocken Medical Malpractice Lawyer

When you visit a hospital or doctor in Conshohocken, you expect to receive the best care possible. You trust that doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals will be knowledgeable enough to treat your medical condition with skill. Sadly, thousands of people die or sustain serious injuries every day while receiving treatment from negligent hospitals, clinics, and physicians.

If you or a loved one was injured due to the negligent actions of a healthcare professional, Jacobs & Fishman, P.C. may be able to help. Our Conshohocken medical malpractice attorneys have more than 80 years of combined experience handling lawsuits against hospitals and doctors in Pennsylvania. For a free legal consultation, contact us online, or call our law offices today at (610) 941-4250.

What is Medical Malpractice?

Medical malpractice occurs when the negligent actions or omissions of doctors, nurses, hospitals, or other healthcare providers lead to a patient’s injuries. In a medical malpractice lawsuit, an “omission” is a failure to take necessary action.

A 2016 study by Johns Hopkins Medicine suggests that medical malpractice is the third leading cause of death in the United States. Additionally, the investigation revealed that more than 250,000 Americans die from medical errors every year.

Generally, medical professionals and their insurance providers will attempt to show that they acted with utmost professionalism. They may even argue you suffered injuries because of a pre-existing condition. However, thanks to decades of trial experience, we are highly familiar with medical malpractice claims and how to hold the liable parties accountable in these complex cases.

Types of Medical Malpractice Claims

Medical malpractice is not limited to one type of doctor or hospital error. Malpractice-related injuries can stem from all types of negligent actions or omissions. Common types of medical malpractice lawsuits we can handle at Jacobs & Fishman include birth injuries, medical misdiagnoses, failures to diagnose, hospital infections, medication errors, and accidentally leaving medical instruments inside the patient.

Birth Injuries

Birth injuries occur when a healthcare professional causes injury to an infant before, during, or after the baby is born. For instance, applying too much physical pressure to a child’s shoulder during the delivery process can lead to devastating injuries such as Erb’s palsy, or paralysis of the arm. The child’s mother can also suffer serious injuries if an OB-GYN or hospital fails to provide the appropriate treatment.

Misdiagnosis and Failure to Diagnose

Misdiagnosis happens when a doctor does not diagnose your current illness accurately – for instance, diagnosing a life-threatening disease as a less serious condition. Failure to diagnose occurs when a doctor does not detect the signs and symptoms of a condition, such as the failure to diagnose cancer. As a result of misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose, the patient does not receive adequate or timely treatment, which can damage the patient’s prognosis and chances of survival.

Hospital Infections

Hospital infection injuries can occur as a result of unsanitary conditions, such as a lack of proper surgical instrument sterilization procedures. Many infection injuries occur before, during, or after a surgical procedure. For instance, if a patient has a contaminated IV inserted into his or her veins, he or she can develop devastating, life-threatening infections.

Medication Errors

Medication errors generally occur when a healthcare professional provides a patient with either the wrong prescription medication, or the correct prescription in the wrong dosage amount. In other instances, a pharmacist may miswrite the proper dosage or make other errors that lead to dangerous mix-ups. If a patient takes the wrong medication or the wrong dose, he or she could experience serious complications that could be life-threatening or even fatal.

Medical Instruments Left Inside the Patient

After a surgical procedure, surgeons must make sure they count all the instruments used during surgery to avoid leaving any inside of the patient’s body. Despite this, negligent or careless doctors sometimes leave instruments inside the patient, which can lead to severe injuries. This type of medical error is called “surgical object retention” or “unintended retention of foreign objects” (URFO). Our skilled and experienced attorneys can help you with these and other types of medical malpractice cases in Conshohocken.

Filing a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit in Pennsylvania

Many medical malpractice cases are based on negligence. As the plaintiff in a malpractice case, you will need to prove the following elements:

• The defendant owed you a duty of care.
• The defendant breached their duty of care.
• The defendant’s breach of duty caused you harm.
• You suffered damages.

While these are the essential elements that plaintiffs generally need to prove in personal injury cases, malpractice lawsuits require special attention to complex medical details. For instance, you must show your doctor breached their duty by failing to exercise the expected level of care. In other words, it will be necessary to demonstrate that your doctor did not perform as a competent, prudent, and reasonable physician would have under the same circumstances.

Keep in mind that the state of Pennsylvania requires you to file your medical malpractice claim in a timely manner. If you miss the legal deadline to submit your claim, you may be barred from continuing. This time limit is known as the “statute of limitations.” Generally, the statute of limitations for medical malpractice lawsuits in Pennsylvania is two years from the date of injury.

Conshohocken Medical Malpractice Attorneys that Sue Doctors

The experienced medical negligence lawyers at Jacobs & Fishman, P.C. have been representing the injured for decades. Our extensive knowledge and skill allow us to provide aggressive, strategic legal representation to all our clients.

If you or a loved one was injured by a negligent doctor, nurse, hospital, or other healthcare provider, we may be able to help. For a free consultation about malpractice injury claims in Pennsylvania, call our law offices today at (610) 941-4250, or contact us online. We don’t get paid unless you get paid.