Parkville, Maryland Medical Malpractice Attorneys

Medical Malpractice Attorney Guiding Clients in Parkville, MD

The medical care people receive plays a crucial role in their overall health and well-being. When the care people receive from healthcare providers does not meet the standards that patients expect, serious injuries can occur. A physician, nurse, surgeon, or other medical professional who has acted negligently may be held responsible for injuries that occur as a result.

While medical negligence may affect patients in many ways, people in these situations may encounter complex issues and legal concerns as they deal with medical malpractice claims. At Silverman Thompson, our attorneys can make sure injury victims follow the right procedures during these claims, and we know how to advocate for our clients and help them obtain the fair compensation they deserve. We will handle the legal issues involved in a case so that our clients can focus on healing, and we will work to ensure that they will be fairly compensated for the harm they have suffered.

Doctor Negligence

Physicians need to be able to diagnose conditions correctly, develop treatment plans, and attend to the needs of their patients. When a doctor makes poor decisions or commits errors that should have been prevented, a patient who is injured may take steps to hold the physician responsible. These cases may involve issues such as:

Misdiagnosis and Delayed Diagnosis

A doctor may make a misdiagnosis by attributing a patient's symptoms to the wrong condition. They may also delay in making the right diagnosis by failing to order tests, failing to recognize symptoms, or failing to refer a patient to a specialist. An error in diagnosis may cause a patient's illness to progress without receiving treatment that is needed.

Cancer misdiagnosis can be especially harmful for patients. If a doctor fails to recognize breast cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer, or other types of cancer, a patient may not receive treatment that could stop the progression of the cancer. If a doctor dismisses potential warning signs of cancer or fails to order biopsies or other types of tests, a patient may miss the opportunity to stop the cancer from spreading or progressing to a stage that could put their life at risk.

Multiple other types of conditions may also be misdiagnosed. Issues such as a heart attack, stroke, or pulmonary embolism may be a medical emergency, and if treatment is not provided within a specific window of time, the patient could suffer permanent disability or death. If a doctor fails to recognize these conditions, they may be responsible for injuries a patient suffers due to the failure to receive necessary care.

Incorrect Prescriptions and Medication Decisions

Physicians may make multiple types of medication errors that could cause harm to patients. If a doctor prescribes the wrong medication, a patient may experience an allergic reaction, harmful side effects, or other issues, and they may not receive the treatment needed for a specific condition. If medication is provided at the incorrect dosage, a patient could suffer an overdose, or the medication may not be effective.

Failure to Obtain Informed Consent

Patients will need to understand what will be done during a specific course of treatment, the potential risks they may face, the other options that may be available, and any other information that could affect their health. They should be able to consent to treatment after being informed of all relevant information. When a doctor does not take steps to obtain this informed consent, they may be held responsible for injuries a patient suffers due to risks they should have known about.

Nursing Errors

Nurses play a critical role in patient care, and when they make errors or do not attend to patients' needs, serious harm can occur. Nursing negligence can lead to injuries to patients due to issues such as:

Medication Administration Errors

Nurses are often responsible for administering medications to patients in hospitals and other medical offices. They may make errors when doing so, such as by using the wrong doses or the wrong delivery method. Patients may suffer harm if medications are not administered at the right times. In some cases, medications meant for one patient may be administered to another patient. These issues can lead to multiple types of injuries.

Inadequate Monitoring and Failure to Respond

Nurses are responsible for monitoring the conditions of patients, responding to concerning symptoms, and keeping doctors informed about the status of patients. Errors in monitoring may include a failure to check patients' vital signs at the required times, failure to respond to signs of distress, failure to recognize the signs of serious complications, or failure to inform doctors about concerns in a timely manner. Understaffing at hospitals may result in nurses being too busy to properly monitor patients and attend to their needs.

Infections

Nurses who fail to follow the right procedures to prevent infections may be responsible for causing harm to patients. These issues may include failure to wash hands correctly, failure to sterilize equipment such as IVs or catheters, or failure to clean and care for wounds correctly. Infections can cause serious harm to patients who were already at risk, and a hospital may be responsible for its failure to make sure the proper infection control procedures were followed.

Surgical Errors

Operating room negligence can cause devastating harm to patients. It may prevent surgical procedures from being effective, or it may result in additional harm to patients without correcting their underlying medical issues. The errors that can occur during surgery include operating on the wrong body part, performing the wrong procedure, damaging tissues inside a patient's body during a procedure, or leaving instruments or other objects inside a patient.

Errors can also put patients at risk after a surgical procedure has been performed. If a patient is not monitored for potential complications, issues such as infections or internal bleeding may not be recognized. A patient who is prematurely discharged from a facility after a procedure may not receive the care needed to make a full recovery.

Other Forms of Medical Negligence

Medical malpractice can take many other forms, including:

• Emergency Room Negligence: Doctors, nurses, or other personnel who work in emergency departments may be responsible for injuring patients due to negligence. Misdiagnoses may occur, or patients may not be provided with timely care to address medical emergencies. Other forms of negligence may include failure to monitor patients, failure to prevent infections, or discharging patients prematurely.
• Birth Injuries: There are multiple forms of negligence that can occur during pregnancy, labor, and delivery, and these issues can put the health and well-being of both babies and mothers at risk. Many of the most serious injuries that take place during childbirth will involve damage to the brain, which can lead to cerebral palsy or other developmental issues. Other forms of negligence may include failure to monitor a child for fetal distress, failure to perform a C-section delivery within the right window of time, or failure to diagnose and treat maternal hemorrhaging after delivery.
• Laboratory and Radiology Errors: Errors made when performing diagnostic tests can prevent a doctor from making a correct diagnosis. Lab technicians may reach inaccurate results by mishandling or contaminating samples. Radiologists may not notice an abnormal issue on an MRI or other type of imaging test. Clerical errors may result in test results being reported incorrectly. All of these issues can put the health of patients at risk.
• Nursing Home Negligence: Staff members at long-term care facilities may engage in multiple forms of negligence that can lead to serious injuries. Neglect may lead to bedsores, medication errors, falls, malnutrition, or dehydration. Abuse may result in injuries, and it may consist of emotional abuse, sexual abuse, or physical abuse. Nursing homes may be held responsible for negligence that has resulted in harm to residents.

Contact Our Parkville, MD Medical Malpractice Lawyers

The team at Silverman Thompson can help victims of medical malpractice and their families take steps to obtain financial compensation for their damages. Contact our Parkville medical negligence attorneys at 410-385-2225 and schedule a free consultation today.